To the Moon and Back
by Snowsilver
Summary: A first person account of Majora's Mask, through the eyes of a 'different' perspective. Newest Part: The Carnival of Time and confronting Skull Kid...
1. Prologue: Timbre accepts a Job

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To the Moon and Back: Prologue

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Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.

(Author's Note: You're probably wondering what the HECK this is, and why the heck I haven't updated my other story yet. Fear not. I am not abandoning any story. This is just something to help with the writing process. What is it? Read on and you shall see)

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Kat wandered through Kakariko village, looking like a woman on a mission. In fact, this was actually the case — as she was currently yelling out someone's name.

"Tim!! Tim, where _are_ you?!"

The fourteen-year-old was exasperated, and her voice betrayed that fact quite readily. It was a nice day out, and she was starting to get annoyed wasting it on a search mission.

"_TIMBRE!_"

People were starting to stare, though by now they were quite used to her and her friends behaving oddly. Kat ignored the stares for the most part, as she was quite used to it as well. Grumbling under her breath, she tried to think of where Timbre might plop himself on a nice day like this.

And like that she had her answer.

Two minutes later she stood on one of the many red-shingled roofs, looking up the long ladder to the watchtower.

"Tim! I _know_ you're up there! Tim!"

There was a slight movement at the watchtower, and slowly a fuzzy silhouette peered down at her, blinking owlishly in the noontime sun.

"Woof?" it offered, looking slightly perturbed.

Kat just scowled. "'Woof' yourself. Come down here, I've got a message for you."

The head withdrew, and suddenly a large object hurtled down onto the roof beside Kat, giving her a bit of a start. The large object shook himself off, giving her the benefit of a long, toothy wolf-grin.

Kat wasn't impressed. "Showoff. I didn't mean you had to chuck yourself off the roof or anything"

The wolf, who of course was Timbre, just wagged his tail noncommittally. It had been four years since she'd first met the strange little boy in Hyrule Castle Town, and like her and all of her friends, he'd grown. Quite a bit, actually. He'd practically tripled in size, though like most adolescents, he had that kind of stretched and unfinished' look about him.

Moments later, and that lanky wolf was replaced with an equally lanky teenager, whose wildly spikish black hair blew in every direction as he stood up straight.

Years ago, Kat and everyone else had been taller than Timbre. Now the boy towered over all of _them_. He wasn't _much_ taller than some of the boys, but he certainly had his growth spurt first, and fastest.

"Message? From who?"

Kat gestured towards the windmill. "Kas. He wanted to talk with you. Did you do anything wrong?"

"Wrong?" The youth put a gloved hand to his chin. "I don't think so, why?"

"Dunno, he just kind of seemed like he was really thinking about something. Well, knowing Kas, it's probably important."

"Probably." Kasumi was actually the older brother of Tyhino, and a very good friend of them both, though Kat knew Timbre often took counsel with Kas as if he were actually _his_ older brother. "I'd high tail it down there, if I were you."

"Will do." Without a backward glance, Tim flung himself down the sloped roof gable, changing forms again before he'd even hit the ground.

Kat just shook her head as she watched the wolf gallop off towards the windmill. _So much energy_, she thought. _Lately he's been nothing but_. _He's either asleep or in a crazy mood. What is up with him?_

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The windmill was dark and cool, compared to the hot noontime sun, and it took Timbre a minute or two to adjust to the lower light level. If he knew Kas, he'd know that his friend would be wedged up in the windmill's attic, where he could watch the village go about its business without being disturbed.

_Funny that Kas is like that,_ Tim thought. _He acts like he doesn't care, but he's always watching out anyways._

He stood and waited for the windmill to revolve its inner carousel until it was just perfectly aligned for him to make the series of jumps necessary to reach the attic. Not many humans could make it up there, owing to the timing, and the distance. Four legs _did_ have its advantages. A few quiet leaps later, and Timbre padded down towards the soft glow that denoted the upstairs window. Kas would be sitting right alongside it, like usual-

Timbre smelled his friend a moment before he came into view. If Tim hadn't know the man was Volcanian from first glance, his nose would have told him otherwise. There was just no mistaking that slight air of cinnamon and charcoal as anything but one from that land. Though it appeared his friend was asleep at the moment, as both his eyes were closed, and his mouth hung slack.

_Aha_Timbre smirked, and turned his walk into a stalk. Normally it was very difficult to get the drop on Kasumi. So far, Tim had managed to pounce all of his friends at least twice in the last weekmaybe today would finally be the day he'd surprise Kasumi

_Almosttwo more feetand-_

The Volcanian's hand neatly curled up, clasping about Timbre's muzzle and holding his jaws shut. "_There _you are."

_Nuts_.

Timbre just growled.

"Yes, I heard you coming, and no, I wasn't asleep," Kas said in his quiet fashion, letting his friend go.

Timbre drew back in the lupine version of a scowl. "Was I really that obvious?" he growled.

"Not really. I just know what to watch out for," Kasumi answered, perfectly able to understand Timbre in either form. "Now, to business."

Timbre sat down, looking dejected. He didn't really want to be lectured about anything. "This better not be boring."

"Boring?" Kas raised a serious eyebrow. "Hardly. I have a favor to ask of you, that's all."

"Okay"

"As you know, Lady Impa has been slowly building the village library, though it remains largely incomplete."

"Yeah. You need me to go find you some books or something?" Timbre was hoping it meant he'd be able to at least be outside, and not inside shelving dusty volumes or something.

"Not quite," Kasumi said, noting the antsy behavior of his friend. "Though you look like you could run to Lake Hylia and back, with the mood you've been in lately"

"SorryI'm just soso eager to _go_ somewhere. Somewhere that isn't _here_, y'know?" Timbre cocked his head to one side. "Like if I stay in one place for too long I'll take root or something."

"Hmm. Boredom?"

"M-not really. I mean, I'm happy here and all-"

"I doubt it is that," Kasumi said. "In fact, I think I do know what your problem is, and how to solve it."

"Wha? Really?"

"but firstI need you to do me this favor."

"okay. What?"

"I want you to write an account of Termina."

There was a long pause.

"You want me to _what?_"

"Write an account about Termina."

"write an account?"

"Yes. About Termina."

"AboutTermina?"

"Yes."

Another pause. "Butwhy me, Kas? Why not Kafei? He knows a lot more about Termina than _I_ do, he lives there after all-"

Kasumi just stared calmly at his friend. "I think this is a task we should allot to you, however. We are in need of all kinds of perspective, you know. And your perspective would possibly be quite different. And it isn't about Termina in general. We just need an account about what happened during that whole incident with the moon."

"Oh, _that_ part. Well, yeah, I was there for that-"

"Exactly."

"But" Timbre's eyes flickered around, as if looking for excuses. "I don't even write that well! You've seen my Hylian, I mean, I know five-year-olds who write better"

"Then write it in Lupine. I can translate it, you know that."

"you really want me to do this, don't you?"

Kasumi nodded. "Tell you what. We'll make a deal. You write this account, and when you're done, I'll give you some good advice about how to get rid of that antsy tic of yours, alright?"

Timbre sighed. It looked like he was stuck for it, now. "alright, fine."

"Excellent! Here you go." Kasumi withdrew a scroll and pen, and offered it to the wolf, who gingerly took both in clenched teeth.

_Good grief_, thought Timbre. _What have I just gotten myself into?_


	2. Part 1: One Fateful Morning

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To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.

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Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.

(_Hi guys. No, this is not the result of a writer's block! This is the result of a floodI suddenly was inspired by a lot of things (mostly other people) and by the game itself to start getting this story down. Chances are I won't actually start updating this for a real while; I just want it down in print somewhere, before I forget things — or should I say, before _he_ does. Well, a lot of people seem to enjoy Timbre's rather offbeat character, and wellI guess it's fair time for him to have his say. There won't be many more real' author's notes in thisTim might interject with little explanations once in a while, though. Watch out, though. He's wordy. So without further adieu)_

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Some say that autobiographies are a highly refined form of arrogance — and sometimes I think I'm inclined to agree with that. Let's get one thing straight right now. I'm not doing this for my own vanity, nor for my peace of mind. I'm doing this _only_ because I was asked to — I suppose that most important events must be recorded in some way or anotherthough why _my _account is better than anyone else's is beyond me.

For one thing, my written Hylian is atrocious. In fact, if you're a native of that particular land and are able to read this, it is only due to the fact that it has been translated, consequently by the same person who asked me to _write_ this thing in the first place.

But back to my point. This isn't _my_ life story, just a view on how _it_ happened. More specifically, Termina. This will be an account of the three infamous days (give or take a month) preceding the Carnival of Time; which occurred when I was ten.

The whole moon falling' incident, you know.

Before I start thisthing proper, I suppose I should introduce myself. My full title is Timbre Neiro Kaleo Aileir Kuroshiro Corva Lyaconus Firral. I know, a little bit on the lengthly side — big names run in my species. Timbre, I suppose, will do, though I do answer to Tim as well.

Any misnomers noted by certain green-clad Hylians will be pointedly ignored.

I suppose I should also note that I'm not a native Hyrulian. For that fact, I'm not really human at all, which may be one reason I was singled out for thistask. Wolves generally don't think the same as humans, so consequently, _I_ don't. Maybe that'll twist things, or at least make them interesting for most people.

Then again, it's bound to confuse a lot of people, too.

Well, I know Kas is going to have a carnival of a time (please excuse the pun) trying to translate thisI'm sure some of this stuff won't transfer very well into Hylian, so I'll try to clarify if there's any confusion. Unless I get lazy about it.

Speaking of lazyKas has informed me that if there are certain parts I feel someone else from the group could explain betterthen I should by all means allow them to take over for a bit. Then again, he won't have to translate _their_ writingunless it was Link's. And I'm not sure that even Kas could translate _his_ writing.

Heh, I'm glad Link can't read thisyet. He'd chuck a boot at me if he could.

Anyhow, best to start this little monologue where things, well, _started_. Which wasn't in Termina at all, but in Hyrule. More specifically, deep in the Lost Woods, before the sun was even up

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Part 1: One Fateful Morning

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I can't recall our specific reasoning for being out there so blasted _early_. I'm not a morning person and it is a fact of nature that people who are not morning people' would rather spend their mornings doing more important things.

Likesleeping.

But my friends were all going, and well(_Translator's note: Timbre notes a famous lupine proverb here, which I'll try and get the gist of_) "Where the pack goes, all the members have to follow." Even the ones who are tired.

Well, I suppose we were _all_ tired, at that point. The Lost Woods is _not_ a place to be taken lightly. They seem quite peaceful, even whimsical at first glance — but that is all a part of its design — a trap. And not just a _trap_, but one that is all but sentient — ready, willing, and able to swallow us up at any moment.

And there we were, right in the thick of it.

I suppose if there was anyone to blame,' it would be that it was Link's idea to go through that particular area. Even back then, he was our impromptu leader, though how _he_ of all humans rose to a position such as that is kind of a mystery to me.

To be blunt, Link can be a little thick-headed at times. Then again, he's also a superb fighter, and possesses a seemingly boundless energy and stamina at times. And he has what I suppose would amount to a natural charisma among humans — he just always seemed _worth_ listening to.

And _that_ is exactly what wound us in so much trouble.

In those days (heh, as if they were a dusty old memory), there was only the six of us; Link, Sond, Kafei, Kat, Chiron and myself. The Volcanians (by that I mean Nick and Ty, oh, and you too, Kas) we metlater on. So for the moment, we were only a half-dozen.

But even that wasn't enough to take on what was to befall us.

I'll try to make this as aesthetic as possible. Put yourself, at least figuratively, into a huge canopied forest. There is very little undergrowth, but the ground itself is covered in a kind of fern/moss/loamy mixture. Imagine it is just an hour before sunrise proper — it is light enough out for a human to see things without tripping, and there is just this kind of _glow_ filtering through the leaves. It was a humid night, and there is mist surrounding you — not the kind that is translucent, but more the kind that envelops you — on all sides. Any sound you make is rather muffled by the simple ambience of the woods.

That is what the Lost Woods is like, at dawn. Come to think of it, it _is_ rather a beautiful place. Very sad, very lonely, but still very beautiful. Still, I don't like to be up that early, normally.

That fateful morning, we were all walking, single file, through that ambient and lonesome place, on the search for all things — Link's fairy partner, Navi.

Or should I say, _former_ fairy partner. She'd left, unexplained, directly after his (and our) first adventure, which I won't go into detail about here. I'm not writing _two_ of these accounts.

We'd all found it weird that she's apparently just _deserted_ him like that, after all, the fairies assigned to the _rest_ of us hadn't traipsed off the moment we were done saving the world.' Let's see — for fairies, there was Cyrus in charge of Sond, Dink in charge of Kat, Pedro in charge of Chiron, Keeto in charge of Kafei and, oh yes, Obol in charge of me.

It was just our luck that when we asked them of Navi's whereabouts, they'd been unable to answer. Link, still a little stung by this apparent betrayal, had asked them if they could possibly find her for him.

So now _they_ were gone too - rather reluctantly, I'm afraid - to honor his request. And there we were, alone and wandering in the Lost Woods, also searching for Navi.

I can't honestly say I was in the best of tempers back then. I was still at a stage where I was, how do I put this, bitter about the world, and my lot in it. I'd wished for nearly five years to get away from my former life, and now that I was away from that life, I _still_ wasn't satisfied. I wasn't even aware of what friends (_Translator's note: Timbre originally used the term packmates' here_) were actually all _about, _back then. I mean, I understood the concept well enough. I'd just never thought that it could apply tome.

I'd been making an attempt to be more of a decent person. Actually back then, I was under the thought that this entire journey was somehow a punishment for my erroneous ways, and my human form simply a curse brought on by my bad' behavior. Because, even though I was bitter, I knew there was no reason to be mean.

But these humans had just begun to make me realize that being niceit made me less bitter. And being less bitter was very settling for the spirit.

They weren't even friends, at first. I'd met them by pure chance (or was it?) one day in Hyrule Market. I'd grown attached to them, in a crude way, despite my initial aversion. And even though I could get very exasperating, I couldn't help but feel like they wanted me around. And a part of me wanted _them_ around.

I was a bit selfish back then, not a particularly good trait in a wolf. Even my friends had been, in my mind at least, a temporary group to follow around, until I found a way out of my punishment,' and back where I came from.

At the same time, I didn't _want_ to go back where I came from, even though I missed being a wolf. That part is hard to explain tooI wasn't used to a human form then, even after having lived through an adventure in it already. I missed a lot of things about my other' selfI missed having more sturdy legs, I missed being able to defend myself, I wished I could at least _hear_ things right, and actually be able to _smell_ things, and -

Yeah. I was a mess of contradictions. And the fact that I was up this early didn't exactly make me in any better of a mood.

So therefore it was with that mindset that I finally broke the silence.

"Why," I started, rather sharply, "did we have to go about this so _early?_" My somewhat angry statement sounded opaque, as if the moss were absorbing my words like so much water.

I was last in line, but my words managed to reach the boy in lead. Link, astride his own horse Epona, quietly drew his ride to a careful stop. Epona's head was down at an angle as if she were tired too.

Not that I was going to go anywhere near her. I'm a little wary of horses

Turning back towards me, Link smoothed startlingly blonde bangs from beneath his unmistakable green hat. "You tired?" He said back to me.

I didn't even bother to note whether he was being sarcastic. Back then, that was the way it was. I glared, but didn't answer. I didn't want to admit I was, because he'd just make fun of me.

Link scowled. "Hello? You even _with_ us, Timbe?"

Timbe.' Ok, _that_ set me off a little. Come to think of it, it still does sometimes. A lot of people wonder why Link gets my name wrong all the time. He knows better, because he'll actually get my name right when he means itI think he does it to get me annoyed.

And it worked, brilliantly. I bristled, and opened my mouth to say something ratherunpleasant.

Then, Sond came to my rescue. "I'm a bit tired myself," she admitted openly with a yawn. "Mind if I join you up there?"

The furrow slowly left my eyebrows (newfangled human anatomy that they were), and I suddenly felt very guilty. I was _trying_ to be good, trying of all things, to benice. Why did he have to rile me up like that? Did he _want_ me to get mad at him?!

"Iguess so," Link muttered, distracted, and Sond clambered up onto Epona's back, but not before turning, looking me in the eyes, and smiling.

Somehow, just that smile from a friend' managed to make me feel a little glad and upset at the same time. I started admonishing myself silently, even as Epona started walking again. Chiron and Kafei followed quietly, the former due to his rather stoic nature, the latter due to timid politeness. Neither of them wanted to make me rile up, and I couldn't help but glare a little at them as they just walked away. They weren't any help, either way.

"You alright?"

I looked at Kat's hopeful face, though only for a second. If there's another bad problem I have, it's looking people in the eyes. I can't do it too often. Suddenly the forest floor became exceedingly interesting.

"M'sorry," I mumbled.

"For what?" It wasn't a retort, I reminded myself, before I started to bristle.

"Forbeing myself, I guess. I'm not very nice, y'know."

Kat looked me over, trenchcoat and all, as if she were grading fine jewelry. "But you _are_ a nice person," she finally argued, though her voice didn't raise.

"Eh?"

"Tim-" she said haltingly, still unsure if that bugged me or not, "I think you are nice, when you're being yourself. Being mean, that's not being yourself, you're only _acting_ like you don't care." She cocked her head to one side, a surprisingly wolf-like expression. "How come you feel like you have to hide your true self?"

My stomach turned a loop-the-loop. _Hidemyself?_

I blinked several times, and almost met her gaze again. Kat was the first person I'd actually _met_ in this world, over all things, a pack of Wolfos. She'd been foolish- no — careless, or something, and when I found her, she was just about to be torn to pieces.

And I'dsaved her life, kind of. Well, I'm sure she'd tell you about it if you asked. I'd always thought it was just a fluke on my part to do that sort of thing, back then. Or so I thought.

Still, she'd currently given me some food for thought. It wasn't the first time, nor would it be the last, either. Did I really _hide_ myself? WellI didn't exactly _look_ myself at the momentI'd tried to explain it to them before, but I don't think they really understood.

I was about to say something else when a startled whinny and a surprised scream cut though the air, coming directly from the patch of fog where our friends had walked. It wasn't one of those screams of horror, more like a scream where you've been thrust suddenly into a dangerous situation. Although to my and Kat's horror, the yells abruptly cut off, almost as if-

"What the-" Kat went from philosopher to fighter in the space of a whip-crack. Like most females, her moods could be quite variable. Without a backward glance, she threw herself into the fog, leaving me alone.

"Hey wai-" I dashed off too, trying (and failing) to catch up with her. Even now, years later, I'm still just a klutzy human at best. How on earth they actually _manage_ these spindly legs is beyond me. If I'd been in my better' condition, I would've caught up to her easily and even passed her, though I doubt that would've helped things in any way.

Tripping half a dozen times (stupid roots), I stumbled aimlessly into a clearing, and stopped in abject surprise.

The place looked like a war zone — my friends were all strewn about, unconscious! Well, at first I was afraid they were worse off — until I spotted Kat, who'd been conscious and yelling only minutes before. She was out senseless, but I could see her breathing. Several groans marked the places where the others had fallen. I could see Kafei rolled up in a little ball not too far off, Chiron sprawled uncomfortably across a tree root, and Sond and Link crumpled on the ground in front of Epona, who stood aside, snorting and pawing the mossy ground as if confused.

I automatically dropped to all fours, the only defense stance I knew, though it isn't the best thing to do. What had gotten into that horse? Had she suddenly gone completely crazy and bucked my friends off, leaving them senseless on the ground? If that was the case, why were the three people _not_ on horseback also unconscious?

My eyes flickered over to Kat, and I noticed a low hanging branch swinging above her head. It was still wavering from some inertia, almost as if someone had held it back and let it go.

Where it had promptly smacked poor Kat in the head, and knocked the girl out.

_Something's odd around here_I thought dimly as I noticed what looked like two small glowing orbs circling the accursed horse.

_Fairies!_ Butnone of ours, that was for sure.

One was a light golden color, and the second one shone a very dark violet. The lighter one turned in my direction and jingled.

There was a _whoosh_ of movement behind me. I whirled, only to see a blur of bright color — then someone's fist connected with my throat.

When someone hits you in a place like that, it really can take you out. Stars flew, I gagged, and all four of my limbs collapsed under me. It all happened so quickly that I couldn't even defend from the second blow, which exploded somewhere in the back of my head.

Then everything went black.


	3. Part 2: Thievery and a Chase Scene

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To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.

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Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.

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I should have seen this one coming. I just realized how _long_ this is going to take me. And well lately, I've been a bundle of nerves. I can't sit still. Is this Kas's idea of a cruel joke? Ow. Apparently so, judging by my tweaked ear. Wellbest get this slave chore done.

Ow. Okay, I promise I won't call it a slave chore. Just stop jabbing at me now, Kas.

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Part 2: Thievery and a Chase Scene

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So there we were, the Heroes of Time, saviors of Hyrule, seasoned travelers of time and space. And we were unconscious, the six of us having been knocked out by two ragtag fairies out for a laugh.

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Well, actually, there was a third entity in the scandal, and _his_ involvement was to be a major, major problem. You'll find out why _very_ soon, for those of you who don't already know.

I slowly came to my senses, and realized I was practically face down in the dirt. My eyes were still shut, but already there was a phenomenally _bad_ ache that seemed to run right through my throat.

First thing I did, after wincing internally, was to sniff. Just my lupine instinct, though a largely useless one, if you don't have the right nose. Humans can't smell worth an Ore Chunk, y'know, what with their muzzles all smushed up and all. Not sure how they manage to live with that.

Still, the exercise just managed to confirm my current position: face first on the forest floor. The somewhat earthy smell of _dirt_ filled my entire sense. Had I been in my other form, I would've learned a lot more than just dirt.' I would've known what kind of dirt, how long it had been since it had last rained, and the scent of anyone who'd been around in the past day or so, among other such little tibits of info. You humans really miss out on a lot.

But that wasn't to be, so I tried my second option, and listened. Humans can't hear very well either, but they _can _hear better than they can smell. Which is fortunate.

_Th-thump. Th-thump. _I realized I could hear my own heartbeat thrumming away, but as I toned that out, I slowly heard voices swimming into audibility.

"Hey Skull Kid, lemme touch it! I wanna see!"

"You can't, Tael! What would we do if you dropped it and broke it?"

The two tinny voices sounding off were clearly from the fairies I'd seen. I'd heard enough high-pitched voices to know them when I heard them. But who was that they were talking to? A Skull Kid?

A real' Skull Kid is a child's spirit that was lost to the spell of the Woods. I think. Kind of like a Kokiri, only not under the protections of the Deku Tree. Either way, if one of those was about, knocking people out, then it was a problem.

Behind the bickering, I heard a discordant note sounding from a very familiar instrument.

_That! That sounded like Link's Ocarina!_

A strange (and freaky) giggle picked up abruptly as the note faded.

The first fairy voice sounded again, with a slight whine. "Wellhe's hoggin' all th' instruments!"

"No, Tael!"

"Awwhey! Skull Kid! Ya never checked if that last one had anything!"

_Lastone? Uh oh._

"Hmm." I heard (and felt) shuffling footsteps approach. Then, after a slight pause, I felt someone's foot shove into my stomach and deftly roll me onto my side. My groan was genuine, but it awoke black agony in my bruised throat to make noise.

I felt someone rummage through my coat pockets, making me flinch slightly. I was usually a little wary of pickpockets, but now I had to suffer this one for the sake of deceit.

I tried cracking my eyes open just a tiny bit, to see who this Skull Kid' really was. Things were exceedingly blurry, but I slowly made out a dark figure, dressed in an odd patchwork of clothes. However, the stranger's face was masked — literally.

If there were one word to describe that mask, it would be_flamboyant_. It was exceedingly colorful, almost painfully so. Heart shaped, it completely covered this Skull Kid character's face. It was mostly tones of violet, woven together until the entire pattern swirled together like oil. Triangular yellow spikes lined its sides. The mask had eyes, too, not just eyeholes. Big, round, reddish greeny-yellow ones, with pinpoints of black for pupils.

Overall, it made for a piercing, somewhat frightening, and intriguing face cover. If I had but known

A sudden jingle brought the violet fairy into my line of sight. It had been his voice I'd heard first.

"Hee hee! Ya really belted im good, didn't ya, Skull Kid! He looks like he'll be out for a week!"

Then the masked one spoke. When he did, it was almost as if there were two voices speaking in unison; a childlike whine and a throaty rasp. Just the sound of it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. "This one? No. He is awake, even now. Hm."

My eyes shot open in surprise.

The Skull Kid cocked his head, and spoke in the childish voice. "Aww nutshe doesn't have an instrument on himtoo bad."

The lighter fairy made her appearance, and hovered in front of my face. "Hmm, maybe you should belt him again! Then he really would be out for a week!"

I tried to say _I don't think so_,' but my injured throat was like a bottlebrush. "G'harrrk!"

The fairy drew back, and giggled. "What a silly thing to say!"

The Skull Kid cackled. The raspy voice had completely faded. Had I only imagined it? "Since ya didn' have an instrument, guess I stole yer voice instead!" He mockingly tapped the side of his head. He was about to say something else whensomeone else did.

"Stop right there!"

It was Link's voice ringing out, a little cheesy-sounding (Link loves playing the ever popular but slightly cliché role of hero' to the extreme), but for the moment I was glad to hear it.

The Skull Kid turned in surprise, and I suddenly realized that there was something slung over the thief's shoulder.

Chiron's guitar! And thrust in his belt, Sond's flute! And tucked on the other side of his tunicKat's instrumentwhat's it calledhold on, I'll be right back while I go ask

okay, I'm back. It's called a trumpet.

Anyhow, I sat up groggily while the Skull Kid had his back turned. Kafei's drumsticks were currently tucked behind one masked ear, like a cartographer's quill. He hadn't just taken Link's ocarina, he'd taken _everyone's_ instruments.

And all five of my companions were currently lined up next to Link, all of them wearing _very_ dark expressions. If there's one thing I've learned from my friends, it's _never,_ ever, to mess with all of them at once.

"Give me back my ocarina," Link snarled quietly.

"What ocarina?" the Skull Kid replied, snidely.

"The one you're _holding_," said Sond, as the Skull Kid quickly hid the instrument behind his back. I contemplated tackling him. "And while you're at itwhy don't you give us all of our stuff back?"

The Skull Kid seemed to consider thisfor a half-second. "How aboutno! Hahahahaha!"

I'd had enough. I struggled to my feet, ready to throttle this Skull Kid, stupid mask or not. Unfortunately, although the Skull Kid's back was turned, the fairies were well aware of what I was about to try.

"Look out!" the light one jingled.

The miscreant Skull Kid turned, just as Link made a similar pounce at him.

To _everyone's _surprise, the thief jumped away, _ten feet straight into the air_, leaving Link to drop in an ungainly heap in the space where he'd been standing.

The Skull Kid dropped to earth a yard away, and bounced back up — onto Epona's back. Until that moment, the horse had still been standing in confusion. But as the foreign weight suddenly descended on her, the little filly squealed, reared, and took off as if there were demons chewing on her hocks.

For once, I couldn't blame her.

Kafei's eyes widened as the fairies quickly flew after their master. "Did you see that!?"

"Yeah, and he's _getting away!"_ Link practically ripped himself off of the ground, not even bothering to check for injuries as he sprinted after the robber. "I'm gonna _strangle_ him!"

Chiron had opted to follow. "Save some for me! That was my best guitar!" His _only_ one, too, if I'm not mistaken. The sound of hoofbeats slowly faded as the Skull Kid and his fairy miscreants made their getaway. Soon Link and Chiron were out of sight as well.

Kat, Kafei, Sond and I shared a communal shrug, and ran after them before we lost them completely. As we ran, Sond's face turned back towards me. As usual, I was stumbling along behind everyone. Silly clumsy legs.

"You alright?"

Already rasping for breath, I tried to answer. "Aaarrmmmk'ay." I coughed painfully and stumbled, then slowly nodded. Skull Kid _was_ right. He'd managed to steal' my voice, which meant I'd be sounding like an old Dodongo with stomach problems until I got better.

But if Sond had any tribulations, they'd have to wait until after we'd taken care of current business.

The woods suddenly opened up into a clearing, littered with tree stumps. "There they go!" Kafei yelled, waving. We all watched him point, and saw Link and Chiron jumping from stump to stump. Link was actually doing front-flips as he went, and I felt a twinge of jealousy. There was something I'd never be able to do. Showoff.

Kat took on a burst of speed. "They must know which way to go! Come on, we can catch up!"

So went the frantic pace, and soon we too were jumping from tree stump to tree stump. By this time, I was feeling rather raggedit's hard to do this kind of thing right after having been knocked unconscious. I'm sure the others were suffering more, though. They'd been out longer.

The impromptu incline of sylvan origin (ok, I'll lay off the fancy words in a bit) abruptly ended in a hole. The hole was situated in the skeleton of a huge, long dead tree. I think. One of those millennial arbors you sometimes hear about and seethe ones where if you counted the rings on it, you'd be over your head-

Well, you get the idea.

"They went in there?" Kat muttered, confused. "How'd he get a horse up here?"

"Dunno," Kafei said, "But this is the way, look."

Sure enough, Kafei's finger was pointing at a notch hacked messily into the side of the wood, as if some young person had struck the tree with a sword as a marker. Link had apparently gotten a good idea, for once.

"Well then!" Sond readied her bow. "Let's have at it!"

In retrospect, it was probably a bad idea, all of us charging into there at once. For one thing, it was pitch black inside. For another, we had _no_ idea what we were getting ourselves into. Maybe it was just the confidence left over from the last adventure leading us there, or maybe just the frustration and anger at being so hoodwinked earlier, but either way, it was rather foolhardy.

Well, I never bragged about having a head full of good sense. My Grandma used to sigh when she told me that. So I'll be honest.

I have to admit I charged in there as eagerly and stupidly as everyone else.

All I really remember about what happened next was that there were a lot of collisions, a lot of shrieks (courtesy of my friends, I still wasn't up to a vocal level yet), and a lot of panicked kicks and jostles, resulting in a complete and utter loss of balance.

Then the floor seemed to drop out from under my feet, and the entire tangle of us tumbled downward, breathlessly, into seeming oblivion.


	4. Part 3: A Terrible Fate

****

To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.

__

Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.

----------

Sorry about leaving it hanging like thatbut I ran out of ink, and thenwell, I got distracted. I've been too easily distracted lately, and by trivial things, too.

Kas says he'd expect that, which is why I'm still clueless as to why _I'm_ stuck doing this. Oh well, you might as well finish what you start.

That, and the next part's gonna bereal interesting to write. All I know, is that if Tejina could read this (wherever she is right now), she'd end up on the floor, laughing. But it wasn't at all funny when it first happenedyou'll see why

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Part 3: A Terrible Fate

----------

As it ended up, it wasn't really that much of a _fall_ at all. Well, it was a fall in the sense that we were traveling downward through open space at a very fast speed, but it just didn't _seem_ right. Almost as if we were - floating.

In fact, I would've thought we were if it weren't for the vague glows of luminescene that flashed by at alarming speeds as we fell. Well, that, and that feeling like your stomach is rising into your throat. My throat didn't appreciate that too much.

I didn't scream, because I was too alarmed — and because it would have hurt like bloody murder to do it. I was alarmed because the glows were starting to resemble — pictures. Or symbols. Maybe it was just my imagination working.

check that. I just went and asked Kat about it, and she remembers seeing those symbols as well. Weird, how things like that work out. Unless, we were _both_ hallucinating.

Our downward trip was abruptly stopped — with a splash into rather cold water. Even though the pool was shallow and I should've felt the impact a lot harder — I didn't. It still creeps me out, even after all this time. For all the falling (and reaching of terminal velocity,' I think that's what it's called), you'd think we would've all broken bones. But no — I felt more like I'd tripped and fallen than if I'd fallen off of a cliff.

My bewilderment was short lived — as I now found myself in a pile of arms, legs, and torsos. Unfortunately, I found myself at the bottom, sitting in a cold, wet puddle. I tried to choke out a few words above the commotion which was my other friends, also in varying states of confusion.

"What the-"

"We fell?!"

"Ow, who's standing on my back?!"

"Glaark." That one was me.

"Get off!"

"Where are we?!"

We were just barely beginning to disentangle ourselves when there was a sudden snap — and the white hot glare as the room we were in was quite suddenly illuminated.

We were in a cave, which was mostly covered in a few inches of water. My dazzled eyes caught a sillouette of Link as he stood awkwardly, one forearm thrown across his face to shield from the streaming light. He was down here with us, as well as Chiron. Wherever this was, it was apparently the way that the Skull Kid had taken. Link didn't look at us too much, he seemed too dazed. Instead, he tumbled off of the pile with a squelch.

And stepped right on my left forepaw (_Translator's Note: he means his left hand, but there's no word for hand' in his language. In fact, whenever he uses the word paw,' he probably means hand.' You get the idea.)_.

"Rowwwl!"

Sond, who was sitting dazed on top of the pile of youth (she's just lucky like that), looked around at my cry, before quietly shoving Link off of my paw. Thank that girl for being observant! "What's going on?" she demanded sharply. Then more quietly, "Damn! My bow snapped!" Though _we_ survived impact, apparently her equipment hadn't been so lucky. I felt a pang of sympathy for her. I knew what it felt like to feel so helplessly unarmed.

_No teeth or clawsthen you have to fight, unarmed. And humans just aren't made for that kind of combat._

Kat, Kafei and Chiron all obliged me by getting up, allowing me to finally face the fact my entire back end was now liberally saturated with cold cave water. This was to be the least of my troubles, though.

"Hoy!"

I looked up at Chiron's shout, and saw why.

The Skull Kid was before us.

He was floating, almost _reclining_ you could say, in mid air! _I'd never known Skull Kids could do that_, I thought in confusion. The two fairies floated on either side of the masked miscreant, framing his colorful face' with their respective lights.

"What's with that _stupid_ horse of yours?!" Demanded the Skull Kid, as if _we_ were the criminals. "It doesn't listen to a word that's said to it!"

Link scowled fiercely. "Where's Epona? Tell me right now!"

Sond instinctually drew her bow, and stared helplessly at the two broken halves of it. She looked desolated.

Skull Kid ignored her. "There's no point in riding a thing like that, so I did you a _favor_ and got rid of itHee hee!!"

"What?!" Link looked outraged at the mocking, childish tone of the thief.

"You better not have touched my guitar!" Chiron threatened. He already had the hammer, his favorite weapon (besides the blade in his guitar - but you didn't hear that from me, ok?), out. He looked ready to kill something.

"Or my trumpet!" Kat added.

"Aww, boo-hoo," mocked the Skull Kid, miming a person bursting into tears. His behavior was _infuriating_. He adopted a simpering voice. "I just thought I'd have a little fun with you"

I started to growl, about the only thing I _could_ do with my voice. The Skull Kid — or maybe it was the mask itself, seemed to look questioningly over at me. But then the gaze turned towards the others as their insults continued.

"Don't mock us so lightly," warned Chiron. "We're not ones to be trifled with."

"Yeah!" Added Kafei, who despite this gesture looked slightly less confident.

Link drew his sword. "We've defeated people much stronger then you!"

"Stronger? Hee hee hee!" The Skull Kid described a flip in mid air. As he laughed, that chilling _second_ voice suddenly echoed through the cavern. The mask seemed to shake on its own. "Oh come now," it seemed to say, rather than its wearer. "Do you _really_ think you can beat me as I am now? _Fools_!"

At the word fools,' the eyes of the mask suddenly flashed, and I found myself completely paralyzed. My eyes were locked rigidly with the gaze with those of the mask. I tried to struggle, but it was if my whole body had turned to stone. Similar grunts and cries around me meant that my friends were similarly snared.

_Whatwhat's happening?! II can't move!_

I don't know if it was the Skull Kid, or another hallucination, but I swear I heard a chilling hiss, whispering all around me. It kept reciting a rhyme in a sing-song voice, which unfortunately I can still partially remember, and it still gives me the creeps:

__

Six little children, caught in a spell,

Down in the cave where the shadows dwell,

Majora deems the start- his game will be played,

Now he begins their masquarade

Helpless to resist whatever the Skull Kid had in store, I and my friends simply waited, caught hopelessly in that cruel gaze.

To my horror, I realized that the mask _was_ shaking back and forth _on its own_. After every shake, waves of violet energy, flecked with lightning bolts, undulated from the mask. Those sickly waves of energy snaked ever closer to our end of the cavern, though their travel seemed cruelly slow, allowing us to agonize completely at the inevitability of our situation.

The violet lightning bolts homed in, and as they wrapped around all of us, I felt first-paw what it was like to be struck by a powerful curse.

Two words: it hurts. Little rivulets of pain slammed down every inch of my body, licking tiny fires of bright agony up and down and through my skin. Even my _eyes_ hurt. The paralysis seemed to dispel, just in time for me to arch in pain. And I tried my hardest to scream, only nothing came out.

Black.

----------

Ok, I'll admit, I was stuck at this spot for days. For one thing, just remembering that cave, and that rhymeit still creeps me out, and visits me on dark nights. Majora knew just how to make that fear rise up in you, yet to him it was all just a game. But now I'm hesitant. I mean, how do you just go on about something terrible that happens to you? It wasn't so much what became of everyone, as the events that took place right after, I guess. We were all in for a rough haulthough I guess I can't speak for the others

----------

The first thing I was aware of was a splitting headache, to compliment my throat. The second thing, though this was much fuzzier, was a sudden scream. The scream was one I'd never heard before, something between a wail and a squeak, very high pitched. I cringed, because it was making my aching head ring.

Then words. "What did you _do_?!" came a shrill voice.

"Heehe! Now _that's_ a good look for you!" I could already recognize the Skull Kid's voice.

"Thisisn't reals'gotta be a dream or something," I heard the other voice mutter. It somehow soundedfamiliar?

"You'll stay here looking that way _for-ev-er_!"

"No, waitcome back here!"

"Hehehehee!"

"No! Get out of the way, you stupid fairy! Ow!"

"Pbbbbbt!"

The cackling of Skull Kid was getting fainter, then I heard one of the fairies yell.

"S-sis! Come on! S-sSis!"

**BOOM.**

I flinched, and forced myself more awake. The loud noiseit sounded as if a huge door had just slammed shut. Blearily, I opened my eyes and blinked a few times. UghI felt a little groggya little disorientedand quiteoff-color, too.

I sat up, and turned my face in the direction of the noise. Though my vision was still cloudy, it was clearing. It was then that I was greeted by the strangest sight.

The gold-ish fairy was angrily orbiting a little prone figure I couldn't quite recognize. The fairy bobbed, and flew over towards the door' that I'd heard close, slamming its body against the door repeatedly.

"Whoa! Whoa! Skull Kid, wait for me! I'm still here!!! Tael, you can't leave without me!"

The other figure groggily stood, and I finally nailed the species down. It was a Deku Scrub, though why _here_ of all places-

"You!" screamed the fairy in irate female style, whirling on the Deku, "If I wasn't dealing with _you_, I wouldn't have gotten separated from my brother!"

The scrub just shook his head, and I noticed something weird. It was wearing a long green hat that nearly trailed along the ground. That was a _very _familiar hat.

_That's Link's hatwhat's it doing, wearing that?_

I decided I'd been quiet too long, and tried to yell out Hey!'

It came out very wrong. Now honestly, my throat _had_ just been sucker-punched, I wasn't expecting total clarity, but I hadn't been prepared for what I did do: I squeaked. Not even like a choked one. An actual "Squeak!" sound.

Chargrined, I clapped paws over my snout. _Where had that come from?!_

Waitsnout? Humans don't have a-

Confused, I tried it again. And again: "Squeak!"

The Deku and fairy whirled, staring at me. I jumped, and then the scrub was running towards me. To get to me, he seemed to have to pick his way though a bunch of discarded bushes. He stopped suddenly, helped me up, and brushed leafy-blond hair out of his eyes. "T-tim? Is thatyou?"

I stared. _How'she know my name?_

"Whassa matter?" snided the fairy. "Scrub got yer tongue?"

Something clicked. And I looked up at the Deku. He was _taller_ than me. And had blonde hair. Leaves. Sort ofand then it hit me as I suddenly recognized that confused look.

_Link?! What the?!_

I tried to say his name, and it came out: "Squeak?!"

Even at that point, I had to realize the awful truth. It _was_ Link, and he was a Deku Scrub.

And so was I.

I reeled slightly, looking down at myself in shock. It wasn't the first time I'd woken up to a dramatic self-change. Though thiseven being _human_ was better than thisat least then I'd been able to _talk_-

I must have looked completely devastated, because Link squinted at me, somehow managing to look concerned.

"Y'alright there?"

_No,_ I wanted to say angrily. _Of course I'm not!_

"Squeak! Squeak-n-not!" I jumped. I'd spokenwell, sort of.

Link looked around, then back at himself. "This is weird," he admitted. "I didn't know Skull Kids could _do_ stuff like this"

"They can't, it was because-" the fairy started to blurt. Link and I looked at her expectantly, and she blanched and changed the subject. "W-welllook! Your little friends are waking upheh, they'll be in for a shock," she said, nastily.

They were. Those bushes that I'd seen before ended up not being bushes after all, but were actually the rest of my companions, sprawled about after that Skull Kid's curse. Kat and Sond woke up first, and Link tried to disjointedly explain what had happened to all of us. The girls took the Deku thing in stride, almost as if it didn't bug them that they'd completely changed forms.

Then again, it had never happened to _them_ before.

Kafei and Chiron didn't take it nearly as well. Chiron's first words were curses, mostly aimed at the Skull Kid, though a few were flung around at fate in general for putting him through this humiliation. Actually, Kafei yelled a bit, too. He looked _really_ weirdever seen a Deku Scrub with purple hair? Trust meit looks a little funny. Kafei did still have his Keaton Mask on him, which he'd apparently sat on while being cursed. It didn't fit him very well in his current form, so he had to leave it pulled up on top of his head, more like a hat than anything.

I, meanwhile, was left mostly to myself. I sighed, dreading the time I'd have to face my new reflection. The first time had been worse enough. That time, I'd been completely taken by surprise, not even knowing what a human _was_. You can imagine me wondering what kind of horrible monstrosity I'd become.

That, and I was still largely unable to talk, and rather disgruntled about it. How come everyone else could, at least audibly? It seemed sounfair! I tried to say something again. "Squ-reek-aaawrrrugh."

All five of them turned and looked at me strangely, making me stop in mid-squeak. "You alright there?" Sond asked, hobbling over. She felt my forehead with a little wooden paw. "Not sick or anything?"

I sighed, and shook my head no.

"I don't think he can talk," Link observed.

I glared. _Thanks for stating the obvious, Link_.

"Really?" Sond's red eyes angled sadly. "That's awful! Poor Tim!" She whirled me around, and hugged me tightly.

_Bleh! _I wriggled away, sulking. It's weird to have a bush clinging to you, even if you're a bush yourself. Also, I didn't like being hugged back then. At least when they were sprung on me without me expecting it.

The fairy, however, wasn't paying attention. She whirled back on a hapless Link. "So, now what? We gonna get out of here or what? Open the door!" She jingled. "Well, don't just sit there, Deku boy! Do something!"

"Like what?" Chiron snapped back at her. "You expect us to just bow to your every whim after what your friend's done to us?"

"Well," the fairy started.

She was transfixed by the glares of a dozen Deku Scrub eyes, and she seemed to falter a bit.

"why are you looking at me like that? What, is there something stuck on my face?"

Still the glare.

"Will you stop staring and just open that door for me?!?"

Link quirked a nonexistent eyebrow. I'm still not sure how that worked, so don't ask me. The fairy hovered over towards the door, wings drooped.

"Please," she finally said simperingly, "C'mon, a helpless little girl is asking you_so hurry up!_" Turning towards the door, she murmured something I didn't catch.

Link looked at all of us. "Wellshe's right about one thingwe don't get out of here unless we open that door."

"But can we?" said Kat.

"Looks kind of heavy," Chiron muttered. "And I don't know about you guys, but all my stuff is gone!"

There was a mass shuffle as people looked for their equipment. I looked down. My trenchcoat was still with me, though it had shrunk as much as I had. Not enough for it to stop trailing the ground, though. My gloves were still on my paws, I noted with relief. If I didn't have those onwho knows how neurotic I'd get?

Oh, just on an off-notenever ever try and get a wolf to take their gloves off, even if it's just temporary. It'snot good, kind of like asking someone to remove random parts of their body. We don't take it very lightly. Let's leave it at that.

Not everyone was as lucky as me in the equipment department, though. Chiron's hammer, Sond's (broken) bow, and Link's sword were mysteriously gone. Kafei still had his favorite stick though.

"We can pry up the door with this, I s'pose," he said, still looking very depressed about it all.

We tried it. It took a couple of attempts, though the screeching fairy didn't help any. Eventually, we got the door to prop open. We all piled through, and then Kafei pulled his stick back with a yank, closing the door behind us once more.

"Where _are_ we?!" Link yelled, his small voice echoing.

We seemed to be in a cavern, marred with huge crevasses, creating little rocky islands' of land. On every island grew a single solitary pink flower. The flowers were huge. I could probably sit on one as a human comfortably.

"Hey, wait for me!"

It was that damn fairy again. I'd never wanted something to _shut_ _up_ more than I did her. But she just kept talking anyway. "So, um"

"What do _you _want?" Chiron muttered.

"That stuff back there," she said quickly. "I umapologize, soso take me with you!"

"Squeak?!"

Everyone shook their heads in amazement.

"What, you just expect us to forgive you just like that?" Sond said incredulously.

"Well, you wanna know about that Skull Kid who just ran off, right?"

We all nodded.

"Well, I just so happen to have an idea of where he might be going. Take me with you and I'll help you out. Deal?"

Fickle little beast! I shook my head, still not trusting her. Last time we followed her, we'd ended up like _this._ How did we know she wouldn't just betray us?

"please?" she added, looking desperate.

Link looked at all of us, and sighed. "Looks like we've got no choice, guys."

"And gals," Kat added. "If we don't know how to catch up to that guy, we might lose all our instrumentsthat, and we'll be hard pressed to find a way to get back to normal"

"Think there _is_ a way to do that?" Kafei murmured, sounding desperate.

"'Course there is," Chiron stated. "Every curse has its counter, that's something you learn in basic magic. All we have to do is find that Skull Kid, and make him undo what he did."

Link usually becomes our spokesman, though I'm not sure why. He manages to get us into enough trouble with that big mouth of his sometimesbut then again, he's usually the one least inclined to getting completely tongue-tied. So he turned back to the fairy. "Alright, you've got a deal. But you'd better-"

"Good! So then it's settled!" The fairy looped around him before he could finish. Turning to face the group, she angled her wings slightly. "My name's Tatl."

Knowing protocol, we all introduced ourselves. "I'm Link."

"And I'm Sond!"

"Chiron here."

"Kat."

"Kafei Dotour."

My turn. "Squeak-" I coughed, determined not to lose this time. I screwed my eyes shut, and tried to force my voice into something faintly audible. It worked, barely. "Teembruh," I managed to wheeze, finally.

I swear Tatl rose an eyebrow at that one, though it's kind of hard to tell with fairies. "Isee."

Sond patted me on the shoulder. "S'okay, Tim" I drooped, feeling rather foolish. Was I going to have to spend the rest of my life needing an interpreter? Or would I just have to get _really_ good at Charades, instead?

"Well, ok." Link posed. "Now that that's all donehow the heck are we supposed to get out of here?"

"Across this way, of course," Tatl replied, hovering over the abyss, and indicating an exit far across, beyond our reach."

"how are we supposed to _get_ across that way, might I ask?" Chiron questioned, snidely, with crossed arms. Even as a Deku he managed to look cynical.

"Fly. Duh." Tatl replied in the same tone.

"Um. Right"

"Geez, don't you see the flowers, and-" She paused, mid-thought. "Oh, that's _right_! You _wouldn't_ know, cause you aren't really Deku Scrubsheh. Forgot."

I felt the intense desire to throttle her, then and there.

"Y'gotta use the flowers t'jump."

We all blinked, confused.

"Let's allow a demonstration. Ey, squeak-boy, come over here." Tatl bobbed over my head, and indicated the flower.

_Stupid, stupid fairyif you weren't helping us out_I reluctantly approached the blossom, though I heard Link snicker behind me. "Heh"

Face burning, I turned and glared at him, but while I was off-guard, that dumb fairy nailed me square between the eyes, sending me sprawling down onto the flower.

or should I say, _into_ it?

The thing swallowed me, and I kind of panicked. I flailed around, making little distressed squawks as I tried to lever myself out, when-

_POP!_

Next thing I know, I'm hovering ten feet in the air, clinging onto a hovering flower for dear life. Yeah, I know, weird, huh? Guess you kind of have to try it yourself to know what I mean. While I dully realized where I was, I heard the fairy start to yell again.

"Now tilt forwards!"

I did, and with a little coaching, found myself sailing over that awful abyss, landing lightly on one of the raised platforms. There was another flower here. It seemed we could get across here with relative ease — if we did it in a few jumps.

After my initial voyage, it got easier as everyone learned the trick. By the end of that cavern, some of us were already old paw. Sond had a real knack for it, I remember. I for onewell, I like firm ground, y'know, though I'll admit it's kind of fun to hover around like that, as long as you find something solid to eventually land on.

Well, anywaywe made it to the exit we'd spotted, walked past a very weird-looking tree (we weren't aware that this would later be important), and into the doorway. Or portal. Whatever you want to call it.

It made me dizzy, just to walk though there, kind of like the whole room was spinning, and I couldn't stop it. Really similar to the Forest Temple's hallways, if you've ever been, that is.

We ended up in a large room with a waterwheel. High above us, we heard the grinding of millions of mechanical gears, and a rhythmic _clunking_ noise. Kind of likeclockwork.

Yeah, get it?

Tatl flew on ahead towards a doorway, leading us up a small flight of stairs on the way. "S'around herethis'll bring us up into town."

"Town?" Link asked.

"Yeah, bit of a roundabout route, but we'll find Skull Kid there."

"Great!" Sond said. "Then what are we waiting for?"

The six of us trundled up towards the door. Link had one wooden paw on it, and was about to give it a tentative push, when we heard a tinny, chilling chuckle from behind us.

"You've met a terrible fate, haven't you?"

Well, if _that_ wasn't the understatement of the century


	5. Part 4: Enter Clock Town

To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda. _

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To recap where I last left off: We'd been burgled, turned into Deku Scrubs, then subsequently thrown into a subterranean maze with a psychotic female fairy. And I was effectively mute.

Needless to say, I wasn't having the greatest day in my life.

And that's when this whole adventure took a turn for the _weird_.

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Part 4: Enter Clock Town

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_"You've met a terrible fate, haven't you?"_

The voice chuckled from behind, giving all of us a start. Link whirled, scattering sparkling motes of pollen left and right. "Who's there!" he yelled challengingly. Tatl ducked behind the large green hat. Almost as if she didn't want whoever it was to see her.

I squinted, and a tall figure materialized from the gloom. At first I thought it was a tremendously large and bulky Hylian, until I realized that a good three-fourths of that bulk was in fact a huge backpack, strapped to an otherwise spindly man.

The man looked neither young nor old, but his smile is what creeped me out. It seemed almost _painted_ on. I'd never seen a more fake-looking grin on a human, but the fact that it seemed to actually be his natural face just scared me even more.

Judging from the postures of my friends, I assumed they all had similar reactions. It is kind of hard to recognize facial expression on a Deku. Well, maybe if you actually are one, and have been one all your life, it would be different. Kind of like how I used to have trouble reading human faces at first. Actually, I still do sometimes, and then they'll accuse me of being expressionless-

Sorry, I'm going off on tangents again. You're probably interested in what this spindly man had to say.

He didn't answer Link right away. First he bowed. Then he began to speak in a pleasant but clipped manner, as if he were relating to us items for sale.

"I own the Happy Mask Shop. I travel far and wide in search of masks-"

"Wait! I remember you now!" Kafei piped up. "You're that mask salesman from Castle Town!"

_The Happy Mask Man…?_ I vaguely recollected that one shop in the Hylian city, the one that was owned by a spindly man and stocked floor to ceiling with masks…I wished I could have asked him why he was _here_, of all places, but of course, it came out wrong: "Squeak??"

The Happy Mask Man glanced directly at me. I wasn't sure how I knew, as his eyes were practically squinted shut from his eternal smile, but somehow I could tell his gaze rested directly on me. "During my travels, a very important mask was stolen from me by an imp in the woods. So here I am at a loss…And now I've found you."

Taken aback, we all exchanged a glance and a half. Not that it helped much, in our present condition. "W-wait…" Kat started, "A…m-mask? An imp?"

"Sounds awfully familiar," Chiron muttered. "Sounds like the same guy who suckered you got us too."

The Mask Man nodded. "Now don't think me rude, but I have been following you…"

I shuddered. I didn't like the idea of anybody spying on me. Especially this man.

"…For I know of a way to return you to your former selves."

Link jumped to the front, wide-eyed. "What? Really? How?!" I would've been saying the same thing, but of course I couldn't. Sorry if I keep whining on about not being able to talk. You try having no voice for a while and see how _you_ feel.

"If you can get back the precious items that were stolen from you-"

"P-pre-the who in the what now?"

"Shh, Link, he means our instruments," Sond hissed at him.

"Oh."

"-I will return you to normal."

There was a pause, in which all was heard was the huge water wheel.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Link suddenly crowed, being his impulsive self. We all skittered towards the door.

"In exchange-"

Everybody stopped in their tracks.

"All I ask is that you also get back my precious mask that the imp stole from me."

Link swallowed. At least I think he did. "H-how are we to do that? If you noticed, we're not usually in these forms, but that imp's got some awfully strange powers. How do I know the next time I take him on I won't just end up in a Cucco's body?"

The Mask Man chuckled. "What? Is it not a simple task? Why, to someone like you, it should by no means be a difficult task."

Link liked being flattered. "Well, when you put it that way…" he went for the door again.

"Except-"

Everyone stopped again.

"The one thing is…I'm a very busy fellow…And I must leave this place in three days."

"Humph," Chiron muttered, until Kat elbowed him to be quiet. I didn't like this mask man much myself. Something about him was…odd. Sometimes his whole body seemed to flicker strangely, as if he was constantly fading in and out of existence.

"How _grateful_ I would be if you could bring it back to me before my time here is up…"

We all shared another collective stare. Basically, I think what this man was trying to tell us was: _Get my mask in three days, or you're stuck like you are forever_. I shivered. I just wanted to be _me_ again. Even if it was just my human body. Of course, it was in its way no better for me as a human, but…

The salesman bowed again. "But yes…You'll be fine. I see you all are young and have tremendous Courage…" his eyes rested briefly on Link, who quailed. "I'm sure you'll find it right away. Well then! I am counting on you…"

Link took one last glance back at the salesman, then boldly stepped towards the door.

----------

DAWN OF THE FIRST DAY: 72 HOURS REMAIN

----------

I shielded my eyes as bright sunlight suddenly invaded my eyes. Maybe it is that Dekus are more sensitive to light, or maybe it was because we'd been stuck down in that hole for so long. But things seemed…brighter than usual.

As my dazzled optics cleared, I realized where me and my friends now stood.

In the middle of a bustling town.

_What the…_

We all stared around ourselves in confusion, as the bustle of town life suddenly swallowed us up. It seemed even more intimidating than usual, as we were a lot shorter than the mass of adult Hylians that seemed to make up the bulk of the citizenship of the city.

Kafei looked as if he were frozen. "But…but…but-"

Kat shook him gently. "What's wrong, Kafei?"

The purple-haired former Hylian shook his head several times. "This…this place…it's my home, Clock Town! We're in _Termina_!"

Kafei had told us about Clock Town before. He'd traveled to the country of Hyrule over the ocean separating the two continents. There's two major continents here, you see – there's the continent of Hyrule, which happens to have a country within it with the same name, and then there's Termina, where Clock Town lies, practically in the very center of the land. Kafei had come to Hyrule once, and had convinced his parents that he wanted to stay. Well, it wasn't so much wanted as _had to_, but whatever, it works.

I turned and looked back at the door from where we'd come. As my gaze traveled upwards, my eyes suddenly caught a brilliant painted mosaic of colors, adorning the round clockface of the largest timepiece I had ever seen in my life.

Kafei had said his hometown was one of budding technology, but this was quite astonishing, even for that. It appeared that the clock was run by waterworks, which explained the wheel we'd seen inside the Tower where we'd met the Mask Salesman.

And speaking of…

"He gives me the creeps! That mask salesman was the…" Tatl paused in mid-rant, as if she'd been caught saying something she shouldn't have. "…sorry…just thinking aloud. But…three days? Even if we never sleep, that still leaves us with a measly 72 hours!"

Link turned to all of us at this statement. "So, now what? You heard her…we've got to think – and act – quickly, otherwise…" He gestured to imply the consequence.

I, meanwhile, had something else catch my eye as I examined the Clock Tower.

The moon.

It's funny how humans have these notions that connect wolves with the moon, as if we were like the tides. Something about the moon having influence on our moods and behavior, as if we were all dictated inevitably to its cycle. I think a lot of it is romanticizing, though yes, I do think the moon is very pretty, especially during its full phase. But this time, the moon was far from pretty.

In fact, it was terrifying. In the broad morning sunlight, it was completely clear that somehow, the moon had acquired a face.

A snarling, leering human's face with bared, angry teeth. I squeaked aloud in shock.

Everyone whirled at my cry, and I gestured wildly, pointing at what I'd seen. They turned their heads to the sky in compliance.

"Gah!" Kafei yelped aloud. "_That's_ new."

"Eeeugh…" Kat remarked, when she'd calmed down. "Why is the moon…so close?"

Even Tatl didn't have a witty retort, though I did hear her murmur something under her breath, as if she were praying or saying an oath.

"Come again?" Link cocked his head to one side.

"I said…we're going to see the Great Fairy!" Tatl retorted. "Look, y'all wanna find the Skull Kid, right?"

"Yeah, but what's that have to do with the Great Fairy?" Sond asked.

"The Great Fairy will know what he's up to. She watches over everything." Tatl puffed herself up. "And just between you and me, the Skull Kid is no match for the Great Fairy."

"Say," Chiron suddenly spoke up, "you don't suppose…she'd know how to break the spell he put on us as well?"

"Now _there's_ an idea," Link remarked. He looked up at Tatl. "Alright then. Where's this Great Fairy of yours?"

"We're going to the shrine near the North Gate," Tatl replied, as she winged off in said direction. "C'mon!"

Then she was off before any of us could protest.

I still feel really frustrated when I think back about certain things. The thought of Tatl back then for instance: it makes me want to bite something.

Anyhow, we were left to follow the fairy as fast as our stumpy little legs could carry us. We weaved (wove?) through the crowd, following the little glowball as she winged her way through, jangling at us in a kind of insulting manner. As we passed through a small market-like area, I suddenly picked up on barking nearby.

As we walked, I turned my head, and blinked as I saw a small dog prancing ridiculously around the market square. Well, the dog would have been small, if I'd been human. In my current form, it was actually larger than me to a great degree.

I signaled to the others that it might be a good idea to move it. This 'signal' was accomplished by me forcefully shoving the person in front of me (Kafei) to greater speeds. He grunted in protest, but unlike me, he didn't actually seem to worry about what the dog would do if we hung around too long. Then again, they didn't understand dogs like I did. Of course, I could understand canine perfectly, no matter my outward form.

"_Grr-ruff!" _the dog was growling after us. "_Deku Scrubs really rile me up! Grrr-ruff! They make great chew toys!_"

_We _really_ need to get out of here,_ I whined inwardly.

_And we _really _need our real bodies back…_

-----

Ugh, just thinking about this whole episode makes me grind my teeth a little. I don't think I've ever been so humiliated in my life.

Well, actually, check that. There was that other time-

Ahem. Sorry, just…thinking aloud. Kind of like Tatl does. Back to the Fairy Fountain. We were expecting a crazy, scary-looking, go-go-booted floating woman.

You know, your typical Great Fairy.

But what we got instead was…not exactly normal.

-----

"Oh no! The Great Fairy!"

Tatl's shrieks rang rampant within the fairy fountain, which glowed as normal, the perfectly circular pool mirroring everything reflected in it. Bobbing serenely above the pool were hundreds of pink fairies.

These weren't your normal healing-type pink fairies, though. These were strange little creatures, with huge distorted heads and protruding lips. As the group of us approached, they started circling us frantically, squeaking.

Then we heard a voice that seemed to consist of all the smaller fairies whispering at us at once:

"Young ones! Please hear my plea!"

All the fairies circling me were starting to make me feel slightly dizzy.

"I have been broken and shattered to pieces by the masked Skull Kid," murmured the thousand voices.

Link scratched his forehead, squinting up at the fairies.

"Can you help us?"

Sond elbowed him sharply. "She just asked _us_ for help, dummy. We'm gotta help her first if we want to ask her anything…"

"Oh…" Link could be considerably dull, sometimes.

"Please…find the one Stray Fairy lost in town, and bring her to this Fairy Fountain…"

"But…where will we find her?" Kat asked, desperately. "We don't really know our way around…"

Kafei stepped forward. "We'll find her, don't worry, Great Fairy…"

One of the many Stray Fairies (I guess that's what they're called) snaked down and hovered in front of the purple-haired Deku. "I recognize you," she murmured, as her compatriots did the same. "Dotour's youngest son…it appears that…you too have been subjected to the Skull Kid's mischief…"

Chiron bullied his way forward. "Yeah, think you could fix us?"

"I do not know," said the Fairy. "But I will help you in any way possible. But I need to be whole to do that…"

We promised the Fairy that we would do what we could, and slowly, the pieces stopped revolving around us (thankfully so, I was getting completely disoriented), and retreated up into the Fountain's upper dome, leaving us alone near the mirror pool.

Curiously, I approached the water. I was morbidly curious about what I now looked like…

My friends weren't around me thankfully the first time I caught my human reflection back in Hyrule, and that's probably a fortunate thing, as I had screamed and carried on rather loudly. Here, I didn't startle quite as badly (I was expecting it this time), though of course one more of those annoying squeaks escaped me. I can't help it, it is kind of unnerving, to look in a mirror and see a face you don't _quite_ recognize.

The Deku Scrub peering back at me had a crazy mop of leafy spikes sprouting from the top of his head, though they were colored so darkly green that one would probably just consider them black. My eyes were no longer green, but were now aglow like two orange firecoals. Over the reflection's corresponding left eye ran a dark black streak, slightly darker than the bark-brown skin that surrounded it.

It was _me_, but then again, it _wasn't_.

"Squeak!"

Kat plodded over, and patted me reassuringly on the shoulder. "Oh don't worry Tim…you're still plenty cute."

_Cute?!_ I fumed slightly. At the current moment, I looked ridiculous!

The others spent a few minutes checking out their reflections as well. Link took the change about as well as I did, and I felt somewhat justified to hear my comerade-in-arms complain about as much as I would have, if I'd been able to.

"Of all the undignified…I look like a bobble-head!"

"Aww, lighten up, Link. You look adorable. I'd hug you if I were tall enough."

"Heheh." There was a snicker.

"Shaddup, Chiron! S'not funny!"

"Haha!"

"Quiet up, puckersnout!" Link grunted, angrily.

This of course, set off Chiron. "Why you, don't call me names, squeaky!"

"Wobblebottom!"

"Dirtgrubber!"

"Beady eyes!"

"Oak-for brains!"

The argument followed us all the way out of the Fairy's Fountain, and a good ways back into Clock Town as well. When our group lets off steam, it tends to be an extravaganza. By the time we got back to where we had started, we were _all_ arguing like a flock of magpies. Well, except for me, of course, but I know I would've been throwing insults too if I could.

…would I ever be able to again?

-----

Searching for the Stray Fairy was actually a lot easier than we thought it would be. For one thing, Kafei knew where everything was, though he was lax to go anywhere near his house. Maybe he was afraid that his parents wouldn't recognize him.

Or maybe he was afraid they _would_, and that his overprotective mother, whom we'd heard terrible stories about, would tan his wooden hide 'till it glowed like his eyes.

I could sympathize.

We split up into groups of two, and I found myself with Chiron. This wasn't too bad, as generally we got along pretty well, even back then. Chiron is a little more serious-minded than Link or Kafei, I think it might have to do with Gerudo upbringing. He's a capable person, most of the time, but he's got a fuse just like everyone else.

Anyhow, as it ended up, we weren't the ones who actually found the fairy. Kat and Kafei found her. However, there was one problem: how to retrieve her. When we all gathered up back together, we sat down for a rest in an offshoot area from South Clock Town known as the Laundry Pool. The lost fairy hovered listlessly over the surface of the water, but was beyond any of our reach.

The Clock Tower's bell struck twelve o'clock.

"Hey! You! Fairy!" Link suddenly jumped up, waving his paws ridiculously at the fairy. "Get over here!"

Tatl tweaked him on the snout. "You rang?" She laughed and dodged as Link swatted at her.

"Arrgh! You know I wasn't talking to you!!" Link complained.

Tatl had, fortunately, decided to stick with our green-hatted protagonist, as opposed to me. I probably would've tried to eat her. Well, if I'd been hungry. The funny thing I'd realized, is that even though none of us had eaten in a while (at least since the night before), nobody seemed particularly hungry.

And it was even noon. Don't humans usually stop and feed then?

I shrugged, jostled out the thought, and turned back to where my friends were arguing about something.

"Maybe she'd come if we told her who we are," Kat suggested.

"Hmm maybe…but…I dunno about you," Chiron said thoughtfully, "but at the moment I don't think we can be taken very seriously."

"I could use my stick," Kafei offered.

"No! You might hurt her!" Sond said. "If she's damaged, the Great Fairy might not be put back together right…or something."

Link was still grumping, because Tatl was perched atop his head. She was laughing heartily.

"What…is…so…funny?!" Link finally fumed out. I'm surprised he didn't just burst into flames then and there.

"Hehehehe…it's just so _obvious_, that's all!" Tatl rolled over, still hooting uncontrollably.

"_What's_ so obvious?" Sond asked.

Tatl sat straight up. "There ya go. It's so obvious, you can't see it! Hahaha!"

"_Would you just tell us?!_" Link fumed again, his little fists shaking.

Tatl flopped onto her stomach, still nestled in his hair. "You'll figure it out for yourselves." The fairy smirked, with one eye closed in amusement. "It's easy. Easy as skipping stones…"

Link stared at the ground, puzzled. He stooped (not too far, as he was so short now) and grabbed a stone from the ground. "Hmm…"

I could see where this was going. It was about then that Tatl's words finally dawned upon me. _Skipping_.

"Squeak!"

All heads turned towards me, and just in time. Link paused in mid throw, lost his balance, and topped snout-first on the ground. He'd been aiming at the stray fairy, and that would've just caused problems.

"What now?" he grumped.

I took a deep breath to talk – and then promptly let it out as a disgruntled squeak. I'd figured it out, but how was I going to actually _tell_ them? I shrugged, and settled on a few pantomimes: I swept one of my paws out horizontally, gesturing at the water, while using the other to point at Link. Then I brought my finger up and down in a bouncing motion.

_You see…skip across the water…_

Tatl looked in my direction, and nodded. My friends didn't seem to get it quite as quickly.

"What? You wanna have me stomp on something?" Link's glowing coal eyes suddenly roved upwards, settling on Tatl. He apparently had an idea of what _he_ would love to stomp on.

I shook my head wildly 'no,' feeling rather frustrated. Why were they so clueless? I tried talking again. "Sq-why…d-dun…"

It was working, kind of…

"Whee-squeak…j-ju-ju-"

"Jump?" Kat asked, helpfully.

_Yes!_ I nodded in what I hoped was a positive way. I wasn't too well-practiced at this. "Squ-cross…"

"Jump cross?" Kafei said.

_Well, almost_. I grudgingly gave him a neutral wave. Maybe they weren't as clueless as I thought…

"Jump…cross…d'you mean jump _across_?" Sond offered.

I nodded wildly. This was getting ridiculous, but at least I'd _kind_ of been able to say something other than 'squeak.'

"But…I don't think Scrubs know how to swim," Link said, still disappointed that his rock idea had been put down.

"They don't," Tatl said, breaking her silence. "But they're less dense than water, so it hardly matters…ever seen a bug skate across th' surface of a pond? Dekus can do that, to a degree. Something about 'surface tension' or something. Try it."

Link looked less than keen on this, but of course he wasn't about to admit that he was too scared to or anything. I smirked inwardly. Better him volunteering then me getting thrown in, like I had with the flower.

Link jumped, and his feet hit the water.

And he bounced, just like a skipping stone. His inertia kept him going right across to the other side of the Laundry Pool. On the way, he connected with the stray fairy, and caught her in one trembling fist.

We all applauded…yeah, humans have some weird ways of showing their appreciation for something. Well, when in Hyrule…

…or Termina, in this case…

-----

We managed to back to the Great Fairy's Fountain in record time, considering the first time we'd just kind of waddled there. I think at that point all of us were slowly getting used to our new forms, at least in a superficial sense. But I couldn't help but keep wondering what would happen if we didn't find the Skull Kid in the three-day time limit? _Would _we be stuck like we were forever?

_I_ didn't really want to think about having to be a Deku permenantly…No offense to Dekus of course…I happen to have some as very good friends…but…I doubt they'd want to be Hylian either, y'know?

Gah, I'm rambling again. Where was I?

-----

The stray fairy weaved up dizzily (Link's grip had been a little harsh, I think) to rejoin her other parts. There was a blinding flash of light.

And then a laugh. A really, _really_ scary and unmistakable laugh.

The Great Fairy hovered down to greet us, go-go boots and all.

"Tatl, and you, young ones of the altered shapes…Thank you for returning my broken and shattered body to normal!"

There were a chorus of 'you're welcomes.' I stifled a giggle. My friends could be awfully polite, when they tried.

I choked suddenly. My…_friends_?

Sond whacked me heartily on the back, probably afraid that I was choking. "You okay there?"

"Squarrk."

Well…I guess I can admit it now that I'm older and wiser and all that. I _was_ warming up to everyone. A bit. Maybe.

The Great Fairy was talking again. "I am the Great Fairy of Magic. I thought that masked child was helping me, and I grew careless."

"Yeah, he fooled us too," Chiron admitted.

Then Link butted in. "Are you going to return us to normal now?"

The Great Fairy frowned. "Unfortunately, good child…I cannot."

"Why not?" Link said, sounding a little too demanding for my taste. Sond elbowed him, 'brows' furrowed.

The Fairy smiled patiently. "The relic the child holds is no ordinary source of magic," she explained. "It contains a power greater and more terrible and primal than even I could hope to comprehend," she explained. "Now that I am back to my proper shape, I can appreciate the great danger his mischief could have on Clock Town- or possibly, the whole world…"

We all stared blankly.

I heard Link mutter quietly, almost sadly to himself. "Oh no…not this. Not again…"

He seemed worried, and suddenly those seven past years of experience (give or take some, the whole 'time travel' thing still has me confused) seemed to bow him slightly. I blinked. It was a side of Link that rarely showed, but when it did, it was usually because something important was going to happen.

I guess you could call it his 'real' hero face.

"…what do we have to do?"

The Fairy smiled again. "All I can offer you now is this:" She began to glow softly. "I shall grant you Magic Power as a sign of my gratitude. Please…accept it!"

I coughed, feeling a little lightheaded (_Translator's note: No pun intended!) _. It was about then that I realized we were _all_ glowing, a little. I remember some of us were definitely glowing more then others, Kat especially.

It made sense. Kat was the most apt at those magic spells some of our group had thrown about Hyrule. I'd never really gotten the hang of them, and I wasn't glowing much either. Magic…it must be a human thing.

As the glows subsided all around, I realized something else. My throat no longer hurt, and all the bruises and scrapes I'd accumulated in the morning's chaos were…gone. She'd healed us too, apparently.

"Squeak!"

…except my voice was still missing in action. I looked questioningly up at the Fairy, who seemed to understand why I was confused.

"Alas, I cannot restore to you what was taken any more that I can restore what was stolen from your friends."

Tatl half-guffawed. "Y'mean Squeaky here's a singer, don'cha?"

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Sond looked puzzled.

"Well…when Tael and I and Skull Kid…er…'borrowed' all your instruments…this little fella had none on him…so I guess Skull Kid figured he used his voice instead of playing an instrument."

This was true, and I nodded.

"So…he stole that instead."

"Squeak?!"

"Yeah, and I thought he was just joking about that. Guess that mask's to blame. Well…if you don't get it back from him, there's always the chew toy market…they need voice actors, see…"

I wasn't in the mood to find out what a 'voice actor' was, let alone what the consequences were. As if I didn't know already what would happen if we ran out of time…I spun neatly on one heel and headed rather quickly towards the entrance.

"Wait!" The Great Fairy's voice came. "One more thing that might help you. The man who lives in the Astral Observatory outside of town may know of the Skull Kid's whereabouts."

"The Astral Observatory?" Kafei nodded. "Great, I know where that is. Thank you, Great Fairy!"

"You're welcome! If ever you regain your true forms, please return! I will be able to help you more!" Then with another shrieking laugh, she was gone.

I left the others to catch up with me. At least now _I_ had more incentive to find this Skull Kid.

Well, if I ever wanted to be able to speak again…

-----

"Too bad the Skull Kid stole our instruments…though I wonder why…"

Tatl shrugged in midair at Chiron. "Who knows…he never gave us reasons, we just did what he said."

Chiron did his best to scowl. "That seems pretty foolish…you should always have a reason for your actions."

"Din's Fire!" Kat suddenly yelled from behind us.

"Uh…what?" Kafei spoke for all of us, as Kat stood up from the grass.

"Oh…sorry…I was trying to see if the magic worked."

"Aaaand…I'm taking that was a 'no,'" Kafei replied.

"Well…otherwise we would all be on fire right now," Link observed, causing a collective shudder. I'm kind of glad Kat missed that spell.

…Us and fire wouldn't have been a very good combination.

"I guess magic works differently for Deku Scrubs," Kat said. "Which is a shame…I could have used it to blast Skull Kid…"

"I would try some arrows," Sond added. "But…they're gone, at the moment. Not that it would help any with a broken bow."

"Well, the Fairy gave us magic for a reason," Kafei said. "I guess we'll find out why sooner or later…in the meantime…we have to find Jim."

"_Who?_" Link asked.

"Oh…well, we want to get to the Observatory, right? Jim's the head of the Bomber Gang, and their turf is through the way to the Observatory. We're gonna need his permission before we go through there."

"_Why?_" Link didn't approve of the rules often. "We've snuck into places before…"

"Yeah, well…it won't work. He has the place guarded twenty-four seven."

The Clock Tower chimed one o'clock.

"That's seven hours gone," Tatl said. "Only sixty-five to go."

"Ugh…" I tried my voice again. I seemed to have on and off moments. If I really tried, I could get a few choice words out, but it hardly seemed worth the effort. I coughed, squeakily. At least my throat didn't hurt anymore.

We headed back towards the Clock Tower, and as we circled its base, Kafei spoke aloud, stopping us all in front of the Tower.

"Sheesh…those Bombers seem to be everywhere except _where_ you need them. Normally Jim hangs about in North…but he wasn't there, was he?"

Heh, Kafei's a quiet guy, but he gets just as easily flustered as any one of us sometimes. I took advantage of the short break to sit down. I let my legs dangle above one of the two small water pools near the Tower's base, and stared up at the scenery.

It looked like Clock Town was ready for some sort of festival, judging by the streamers that were hung from the rooftops and torches. And there seemed to be some sort of construction going on in the area. A few carpenters were lugging large planks up a kind of impromptu building. Maybe they were putting up some sort of show tent.

My friends seemed to be taking a break as well while Kafei recollected his thoughts. Hopefully he would figure things out, and find this 'Jim.'

Well, it was a nice day, I thought. Plenty of sun-

"Tim, _look out!!_"

I was so deep in my own thoughts that the warning came too late. Before I could even look over at whoever had yelled, something hit me from behind, _hard_.

With a yelp I topped headfirst into the pool. It wasn't very deep, but then again, I wasn't very tall, either. This left me floundering about until my boots touched bottom. Whatever had hit me wasn't through yet though, and as I felt teeth clamp onto my shoulder I realized just what had caught me off guard.

That damn dog!

I spluttered for air (apparently Scrubs couldn't breathe underwater) as I suddenly rose to the surface. Or more appropriately, was dragged. The dog apparently wasn't any stranger to water.

As it dragged me, its 'prize,' out onto the cobblestone, I vaguely heard my friends yelling things. But why were they wasting their time yelling when they could be helping me?!

"_Got you!"_ the dog growled. "_Eat you! Grr!!_"

Then the dog started shaking me like a drowned rat.

Having firstpaw experience with this, I'm surprised that I didn't get knocked out by the whiplash. Still too shocked to make any noise, I grasped wildly at anything to help me escape becoming this dog's chew toy. Otherwise, Tatl's joking prediction would be fulfilled.

I managed to grab onto something white and coarse before I realized it was the dog's fur. Back to square one.

As it shook me again, I kept my grip on the four legged menace's hair - thank Din that Scrubs have opposable thumbs like humans - and I was rewarded with a canine yelp.

The dog had had enough, and it dropped me, but because I was still grabbing onto the fur, I merely described a flip in the air, landing with a _whoosh_ on the dog's back.

It yelped, and ran off, with me clinging to it.

_Then _I remembered how to scream.

The world had turned to a dizzy riot of blurred colors and textures, moving too quickly for my eyes to really focus. On top of it, my unwilling steed wasn't exactly accomidating. With every doggy bound, I found myself being jostled up and down as badly as when I'd been in its mouth. I wasn't going to be able to take much more of this.

"_Gerroff! Gerroff!_" The dog yelped. Of course, this was about the last thing I wanted to do. If I let go, I'd be sent flying into the ground at best, and into something even more painful at worst.

I closed my eyes, as the blurs made me feel even dizzier. But even this wasn't helping much, I could feel my vice-grip on the dog's fur beginning to fail.

Where were my friends? I thought they were supposed to _help_ in situations like this! I didn't want to admit it back then, but I guess I can now.

I was terrified. I needed help. I wanted to cry out and be rescued, even at the cost of a little dignity. Even if it meant I was to admit I couldn't escape on my own.

And then, the dog suddenly screeched to a halt. I heard someone – it sounded like a kid - yelling something.

"Hey you! You can't come in here! You gotta give th' password!"

Unforunately, just because the _dog_ stopped didn't mean _I _did. Inertia (_Translator's Note: I'm pretty sure he meant 'inertia,' and not what he originally wrote_) sent me catapulting forwards as my grip finally failed.

I sailed a fair ways, seeing how light my body now was.

The only thing I really was aware of was how dark it suddenly became. I heard my own yell suddenly echo, as if in an enclosed space.

Then I landed on something very stony and hard, head first. Stars exploded everywhere.

And I found myself unconscious for only the third time that morning.

-----

So…is this interesting at all? Eh…well, don 't be too expectant – it isn't like I'm out here writing this to be entertaining or anything. But I guess I'm going to have to pass on the pen for a bit. I don't remember what my friends did next, mostly because I wasn't there, and because I was currently knocked out somewhere between a rock and a hard place. But we'll handle that one when we come to it.


	6. Part 5: Moon's Tears

**To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.**

_Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda. _

Ok, time for me to pass the pen for a while, because my friends were elsewhere while I was indisposed – I'll get to where I found myself later. In the meanwhile, I'm going to ask Kat to be spokesperson. Kas won't have to translate for a while, so he'll get a break too. But before I fork it over, I'll give this chapter a nice title…hmm…aha.

o-o-o-o-o

Part 5: Moon's Tears

o-o-o-o-o

Oh, hello. Kat here. No, just 'Kat' will do, I don't know what my full name is anyway, not that it really matters. What does matter is that Timbre asked me to write a little something in his account. Well, if by 'asked' I mean 'tackled me from behind,' I suppose that works.

Tim's been…a little more then jumpy lately. I know he means well, but…there's only so much energy one can take. I don't think he realizes how much bigger than us he's getting. At least that's what my bruises are saying.

Oops…right, the story. Tim said he'd just gone through the part where he'd been mauled by the dog and taken that bad fall, so I'll start right around then…

Again, all of us were working to find the Skull Kid, our various instruments, and a way to lift our current predicament. Personally, the eye's line view of people knees was starting to get just a _little _bit tedious.

"What d'you mean, a password!" Link shouted at the Hylian boy now blocking our path. Only moments before we'd seen our friend get sent tumbling down the same passageway the boy was guarding. The dog, not injured in the slightest, had shook itself, and trotted off, apparently tired of playing for the time being.

That was fortunate. After seeing the treatment Timbre had been given, I wasn't exactly keen on meeting the dog face to face. Then again, Tim was smaller than all of us, maybe we'd fare better.

This boy was a problem though. Until he moved, we wouldn't be able to find out what had become of Timbre. The boy and Link were about the same height, though the boy was clearly younger then any of us. He wore a red bandanna in the pirate style, and smirked a lot.

"Jus' what I mean, Scrub! Y'can't go past 'less you have th' password!"

Link leapt towards the other boy, attempting to bully his way past. This ended up being a rather bad idea, as the boy suddenly gave a whistle. Before we could think, five more boys (wearing blue bandannas this time) were blocking the way as well.

The boy smirked. "Its th' _Boss's_ orders! An' I jus' happen to be Jim, th' Boss!"

Link was starting to sputter with temper, so Sond pushed him aside. Better she take over for a while then have angry words, I suppose. Not that we _all_ don't get angry, but anyway.

"How do we get the password?" Sond asked with simple and very sensible logic.

Jim looked surprised, as if the thought of simply _asking_ for the password had never crossed his mind. "Well…I could give it to ya, I suppose…" He stuck his chin out and thought about it. "…okay!"

Everyone perked up.

"…but you gotta join my gang!"

I groaned squeakily. It's kind of hard not to when you're a plant. All the time we were wasting could have been put to _much_ better use. "Do we _have_ to?" I asked.

"If y'wanna get past here, yeah. But! Y'all gotta pass th' _test_ first, before y'can enter the Bombers Gang!"

"Just _wonderful_," Chiron snarled in the back. "And what's that test, hide and go seek I suppose?"

"Yeah," Jim replied seriously, not catching the sarcasm. "It's only protocol. We'll all hide about Clock Town, though not inside any buildin's or whatever. Y'gotta find me an' four of my Bombers before t'morrer morning t'pass th' test, y'got that! Or are y'all too Cucco ta do it!"

Link bristled. "Anytime, brat, we're ready." He was clearly insulted by that last jab, and it showed.

Kafei shook his head. "Well, this won't be easy," he murmured to us seriously. "They'll cheat if they can get away with it. But…if we all come up with a good plan, maybe we have a chance…"

"Stupid brats," Tatl muttered so that Jim couldn't overhear. "We don't have time to play their foolish games!"

…well, to make a long story short (I guess I'm less rambling than Timbre), Jim signaled his cronies, set one of them to guard the passageway (much to Link's annoyance), and then scattered the rest to the four winds for us to find.

o-o-o-o-o

Wow, I don't envy Timbre this whole task. It's harder then it looks, writing down all your thoughts. And I guess I'm just not as introspective as he is, the stuff he wrote seems a lot longer. Sorry 'bout that.

o-o-o-o-o

There were five Bombers to catch, and five of us – so we split up trying to find one each. It was a good enough plan, but the Bombers were crafty – or maybe they were just taking advantage of the thought that they didn't need to 'play fair' against Deku Scrubs.

Termina, or at least Termina back then, had a few cultural issues to settle– although the different races were starting to integrate, there was often a little bit of tension between them. I guess it was all about different lifestyles. I mean, look at Catalians and Hylians…they practically _look_ the same and can't get along! I guess our group had started to overlook these things, but normal townsfolk were still settled in their ways.

Anyhow…the Bombers cheated. At least the way I always played Hide-and-Seek, you were 'caught' when you were tagged. But the Bombers…well…you pretty much had to wrestle them to the ground to convince them you'd caught them. So it was that finding them was easy-

Actually _catching_ them was hard.

After the amount of searching we did, we all knew that town as well as Kafei. But I was more concerned with Timbre – I think everyone was, though nobody said anything out loud. After all, he'd been screaming pretty loudly while in the clutches of that dog, and after falling down that passageway, his screams had stopped, just a little too abruptly for my liking.

That, and the fact that hours later, and he still wasn't anywhere to be seen. If he'd been okay, he would've at least been able to crawl back out, right?

I swallowed and threw myself into the search. If we wanted to find him, we had to pass this ridiculous test first.

o-o-o-o-o

Okay, I think I've done enough. That, and Timbre keeps reading over my shoulder, which is kind of annoying. Yes, you, Tim. I'll pass this narrative back to him now…because you now know what the rest of us were doing while Timbre was…well, you'll see.

Hey Kas, you're gonna have to start translating again…

o-o-o-o-o

I'm back. Don't tell Kat this, but I really wish she could've written more, or at least taken longer to write what she did. I'm not really keen on going back to what happened after I fell. It involved a lot of emotional pits for me, you see. That and I had a real frightening brush with death…But I guess stalling isn't going to help any. Not if I want Kas' advice, anyhow.

o-o-o-o-o

NIGHT OF THE FIRST DAY: 60 HOURS REMAIN

o-o-o-o-o

I came to in bits. No, not _literally_…but I definitely wasn't articulate for a few minutes, at least. The headache I'd sustained kind of slowed the process a little, I think. The first thing that started working was my sense of smell – Dekus have a better sense of smell then humans, actually – and everything smelled _dank_.

It wasn't the pleasant kind of dankness that you smell after a spring rainstorm or a snowfall, though. It was the smell of ugly, stagnant water. You know, a sewer.

Opening my eyes with a quiet groan, I found myself not too surprisingly, _in_ a sewer.

I was also upside down.

"_SQUAWK_!"

Flailing, I discovered to my horror that I was neatly trussed up, and my limbs were incapable of moving. _Spiderwebs!_ My fuzzy brain tried to collect these thoughts, just as a sinister rattling reached me. I'd just alerted something with my struggling.

Crawling down from the web I found myself pinioned in was a huge Skulltulla. Well, maybe it wasn't _huge_, but you have to remember my current perspective found things to be larger then normal. That, and any kind of enemy showing up when you're helpless isn't a very welcoming sight.

I trembled as the spider came closer, attracted by both my voice and my struggling. Normally, I'm not afraid of spiders any more then I'm afraid of other creatures (_Translator's Note: coughhorsescough)_, but I can say I was rather shaken. Skulltullas are called as such because the armor plating on their back looks distinctly like a human skull. Maybe it really _is_ a skull, I'm not sure. And I didn't really want to stick around to find out.

I was paralyzed, even though it hadn't bitten me yet. My frozen body wasn't from any injury, it was simply from the utter realization that death was very close and very real. My friends were nowhere in sight, and in my current view, I had no reason to doubt that they had simply decided not come to my aid. I was completely alone, I'd been betrayed, and I was about to die.

I froze, wishing for something, _anything_ to happen. Things just couldn't end like this…

As it crawled onto me to administer its bite, the spider's vulnerable abdomen was in clear view. Of course, it wasn't worried about a solitary Deku Scrub being any kind of danger to it. And…it could have been right, except that something happened.

I sneezed.

The Great Fairy _had_ given us Magic Power…just in an unexpected way. Did you know Dekus with Magic Power can shoot bubbles? Neither did I.

"Tchoo!" The bubble was apparently volatile, for it struck the spider's abdomen and exploded. The Skulltulla screamed and thrashed, spinning as it did. Skulltullas have eight very sharp legs, and can spin so fast they send you flying if they suddenly feel threatened.

It shredded its web in its death throes, and actually released me, though not intentionally. As the both of us crashed to the ground, the Skulltulla's thrashings became more like twitches. Then it stopped completely.

Aching anew, I opened my eyes and stared for several minutes at the dead spider.

Then, unexpectedly, a shaky lump rose in my throat, and a sick feeling rose in my stomach.

Still lying on my side, I doubled over and began crying my eyes out. My voice might have been stolen, but I still had enough in me to wail. It was high pitched and disorienting, as it wasn't really my voice.

Apparently, Dekus can and do shed tears.

Looking back, I'm not really ashamed for crying after what had just happened. After all, I'd been very scared, afraid that I was about to die, with the trauma of everything that had happened in the day suddenly thrust upon me. I had been sundered from everywhere and everyone I had once known, my form was not my own, and my very voice had been taken away. I didn't know where I was, and my friends were gone. What makes me ashamed was that I wasn't wondering where my friends were for their sake, but for my own.

I curled up miserably. _Why _hadn't they come looking for me? I suddenly felt a surge of fury, thinking I'd been maliciously betrayed. After all I'd just started to think that maybe some people in this world were different, that I could get along with them. In my head, they'd proven themselves utterly wrong. I hiccupped several times, feeling very angry at the world.

But then, as a stomach-lurching thought crossed my mind, the anger quickly washed into self-despair. What if it _wasn't_ them at all? What if it had been _my_ fault, somehow? What if _I'd_ been betraying _them_? I hadn't had the best attitude with them, even when they meant well. And I was quick to take offense, even when they were trying to be patient with my mood. When they were concerned, I pushed away. I'd been taking them for granted all this time. Maybe losing them was all I deserved. As the thought of being abandoned came upon me, I wailed louder.

I'm not too sure how long I let myself cry out, but after a while, the tears stopped, the shaking and hiccupping ebbed, and I suddenly felt lead-limbed and exhausted. I didn't want to do anything except lie there. The spider was still dead, and looking at it now made me feel sick. Maybe I would just lie here so long I would join it.

_Oh, get _over_ yourself already!_ An internal voice, my own, snapped introspectively. _If you can feel this sorry for yourself, you've clearly got something worth living for…_I groaned. _Now get up. Survival instincts, you remember those, right? Take your sorrows somewhere more convenient, and then come to grips. Pining away is a fool's errand._

I knew it's stupid, but sometimes arguing with myself gets me going again. Even when I was very little, it was my way of justifying decisions I made. I guess that's why I'm so introspective. And it's probably also the reason people look at me funny when I mutter to the wall. I'm just making up my mind, that's all.

Sitting up, I slowly took stock of where I was. The light was dim, but it was enough for me to see where I was in the sewer. Cold water dripped everywhere, on the slick green stones, in the water puddles everywhere, and in my eye as I stupidly looked up to see where it was coming from.

The drip woke me up a little. I realized that, alone or not, I needed to get out of the sewer. Out, or at least somewhere that wasn't _here_. I stood, a bit shakily, and put a paw against the wall for support. I started to tremble again, but I held it down this time. I knew my introspection was true – I'd have plenty of time to sort out my mind once I was somewhere else. Somewhere more safe.

"Hello? Hello!"

Head swimming, I turned towards the voice. An old human, dressed in a blue robe, was peering at me through the light of the lantern he held in one paw. As I stared at him numbly, he drew back in surprise at the sight of me next to the dead Skulltulla.

"My dear Goddesses! I came down here after hearing some screams – and…you poor child!"

He approached, and I drew back fearfully. A thousand questions swam about - I wanted to ask who the man was, where he had come from, where I was - but even if I'd had my voice back, I doubt I could have spoken just then.

He must have seen me quaking a little. "You poor child. You must be frightened half to death…are you hurt?"

The man stooped in front of me. I wasn't that badly hurt, even after hitting my head. I'd taken bad hits to the skull before, and I would've known if it had been anything serious. I shook my head.

"Are you lost?"

I nodded slowly, wiping my eyes so that I didn't look like I'd just been bawling my eyes out. Hey, I was young and male, and I was afraid of losing what dignity I had left.

If the man noticed, he was kind enough not to say anything. "Ah, a Deku child…but you must be a friend of the Bombers! They come to my observatory by this route quite often! Did they show you the way in here?"

I blinked, a little confused by this. Bombers?

"But of course you can't stay here! In the dark and dank is no place for your kind, you'd wither before too long! Come along, now!" He turned and started walking back the way he had come, and I slowly tottered after him. I had nowhere to go, and even though I was still wary of this stranger, I didn't really feel I had any other choice.

Who knew if there were more Skulltullas…?

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The place the man led me to wasn't too far - just up a ladder and a winding staircase. The sewer atmosphere evaporated into another location so quickly that I was startled. The building I found myself in was unlike any I'd ever seen before. It was…_colorful_, and things sparkled. The domed walls were painted with murals that, with further inspection, seemed to be of star maps. Off to one side of the circular room was a small door, obviously the real entrance to the place. I was sure the old man didn't go down into the sewer too often.

Seeing my interested gaze, the old man smiled a little. I think he was relieved to see I wasn't badly hurt. To be truthful, though I was shaken, seeing something new and interesting was enough to keep me from dwelling on my current woes.

"I am Shikashi, Termina's Professor of Astronomy! This is the Astral Observatory, where I study the moon and the stars with my telescope!"

I blinked, staring up at the strange contraption he'd gestured at. It was another example of Clock Town's forward technology, and it was extraordinary. I wondered to myself just how something like that worked. I learned later it had a lot to do with focusing things through lenses and reflecting them through mirrors. Technical stuff.

Shikashi chuckled, probably at my expression. I was too involved to take offense, though. "Have you any interest in the stars, my boy?"

Seeing no danger in answering, I nodded politely. I'd always liked the stars. My grandmother had often told me the stories that the stars apparently represented. And some of the stories, she said, that had yet to occur.

Shikashi smiled. On the whole, he seemed exactly what he appeared to be – an old man with a scholar's passion for his work. I could respect that, even back then. He sat down at his desk with a slight groan, and gestured towards the telescope. "I must say, you have much better manners than my earlier visitor – he was quite an ill-intentioned troublemaker!"

I stared, thinking. A troublemaker…something was nagging at my mind, now that it was clearing finally from my last fall. Then it hit me, and I jumped. The Skull Kid! We-I'd, been looking for him! He had my voice!

"Squeak!"

"Ah, you know of whom I speak? Is he a friend of yours?"

I quickly shook my head.

"Are you looking for him, though?"

I nodded. "Squeak!"

"Well, last I saw of him was during my daily observations, just before I heard you yell. He is probably still where I saw him – on top of the Clock Tower."

Stumbling forward, I pointed towards the telescope questioningly, hoping he'd understand.

"May you look? Certainly."

I peered into the lens, and saw the spread of the sky and the stars. It was dark out now, and I wondered how long I'd been trapped down in the sewer. And my friends…

I choked down the thought before I teared up again and focused back on the view in the telescope. Clock Town was quite visible if I tilted the telescope to the side, the Clock Tower especially. It stuck up from the rest of the town, and even in the fading light, I could see the painted face of the clock. And at the top-

"If you want to zoom in on anything, there's a small crank by the base," said the old man helpfully from his desk. I looked over. He was busy writing something down, probably calculations.

Shrugging, I found the crank, and turned it a few times. When I looked back into the telescope, I could see the Clock Tower even more closely. At the top was a figure, staring up at the moon.

The figure was wearing a familiar creepy mask. It was the Skull Kid! He turned and suddenly stared directly at me.

A shiver ran through me, and I found myself again paralyzed by that gaze.

"_Hehehe_! _I see you!"_

The voice rang in my head as if the mask had been talking to me directly. Still unable to move, I watched as the Skull Kid gestured up at the moon, which looked even larger and scarier at night.

Or was it that it was…getting bigger?

"_What do you think of my work, little Deku?"_

I stared. His 'work?' The moon was his 'work?' As the Skull Kid continued to gesture, something fell from one of the moon's eyes, as if the celestial object were weeping.

Only most people I know don't cry _comets_.

The 'teardrop' arced sharply past my field of view, and the Observatory shook with the impact as it struck nearby.

A quiet cry escaped me as the Skull Kid made a rude gesture and vanished from my view. And like that, my body could move again.

Professor Shikashi had felt the 'teardrop' hit as well. "My! What was that? That's the third impact this week…little boy?"

I looked questioningly over at him. I would've normally been annoyed at being called 'little boy,' except that I realized he couldn't really call me much else. I hadn't exactly given him a name to call me.

"Would you please take a look outside? That sounded very close. Last time there was an impact like that, some of the material survived, you see…"

Hopping down from the telescope, I headed towards the door that I had noticed before. I needed to jump to reach the latch, being so short, but I managed to swing the door open enough to slip outside.

The cool summer's air hit my face, as did the sounds of the night. The smell of green field grass drifted on the wind, and I sighed. It was a nice, clear night out.

Night? I'd been out longer then I would have thought. That meant many hours had passed. And my friends-

I shook my head and threw myself into the task at paw.

The Observatory was fenced in from the rest of this field, possibly to keep intruders away. As I paced about the building, looking for signs of an 'impact,' I tripped and fell with a loud squeak, tumbling into a small crater.

It looked like I'd found the 'impact.'

Sitting up, I felt something solid knock against the small of my back. I grabbed for it, and realized this was probably the 'material' the Professor had been talking about.

It was vaguely droplet shaped, but its surface was smooth and crystalline like molded glass. It felt warm to the touch, and I was pretty sure that it was actually _glowing_. Mesmerized, I sat and stared at it for a long time. For some reason, the glow was very comforting.

Then, keeping the object safely tucked under one arm, I climbed out of the crater, and walked back inside.

The old man greeted me. "Oh! You found the Moon's Tear?"

"Err?" I made a questioning sound. _Gosh, _I chided myself,_ you sound dumb when you do that._

"It is material from the moon, fallen to earth so quickly that it melts and becomes like glass. Most of them crack when they hit the ground, but sometimes they survive the fall intact. I call them 'Moon's Tears' because they seem to fall from the moon's eyes, as if it were crying."

As he spoke, I turned the Moon's Tear about, looking at it again from every angle. It still was glowing.

"They are rare stones, valued by many in town," he said.

I nodded, agreeing that it seemed very precious.

"I fear you cannot tell me, young one, but you seem to be looking for more then just the Skull Kid. Are you looking for your parents?"

Sighing, I shook my head. It was a fair guess, I'll give him that. He couldn't have really known the truth, and he didn't mean to offend. And for once, I was too tired to take offense. The old man looked thoughtful.

"Well, whoever you were separated from, I have no doubt that you will soon be reunited. A parting only lasts as long as one wishes it to, after all. "

There was some thoughtful silence for a while, and then I offered up the Moon's Tear to Shikashi. After all, he'd asked me to fetch it for him.

"No no, I believe that you should keep this one. The tear is a symbol of endurance, you see. It symbolizes the part of a greater whole that will someday rejoin itself. Perhaps it should be your lucky charm, eh?"

I nodded in silent thanks, clutching the tear to my chest. Somewhere inside, I knew the old man was right about finding my friends. I would find them, or they me. We'd been together long enough for them to miss me…and with any luck they'd also be willing to forgive.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

I spent that first night alone with my thoughts outside of the Observatory, flat on my back and staring up at the night sky. The day's exertions, especially all the troubles down in the sewers, had completely worn me out. All I wanted to do was rest for a while, and I promised myself I would re-brave the sewer tomorrow, and find my friends. If anything, they'd be happy to find out what I'd learned about where the Skull Kid was.

The stars looked the same here as they did in Hyrule, which lent a kind of familiar light to an otherwise foreign land. I counted constellations to myself, wondering if my friends had found shelter for the night.

I preferred sleeping outdoors (I still do), indoors was often too stuffy for my taste, no matter how 'cozy' humans thought it was. It was just…unnatural not to have the breeze on your face all night, or having that feeling of enclosure over your head.

I still didn't feel overly hungry, which was odd. Normally I'd be just slightly peckish all the time (I never was one to pass on food, really), but the feeling just wasn't there. Maybe Deku Scrubs didn't eat or something.

It really didn't take me too long to fall asleep, though my dreams were full and somewhat restless that night. I woke up with a start at one point as the Skull Kid's mask suddenly loomed up with a snarl, but fell back asleep as I realized it had all been a dream.

I could only hope my friends weren't having nightmares as well…

o-o-o-o-o

DAWN OF THE SECOND DAY: 48 HOURS REMAIN

o-o-o-o-o

I awoke as raindrops began to patter upon my face. I blinked and tried yawning, before sitting up with a start. Confused at first, I suddenly remembered what had happened to me as I stared at my paws. The Moon's Tear was nestled next to me like a promise.That was it. I'd gotten lost, and was trying to find my way back to my friends. If they'd let me back, that was.

Busily, I scooped up the Moon's Tear, and headed back inside before the sky opened up.

WHAM!

I practically cracked heads with someone who'd been rushing _outside_, and we ended up in a tumbled heap.

"Gyah!"

"Squeak!"

Groaning, I rubbed at my now sore face. But before I could really get a good look at who'd I run over, they got to me first in a bone-crushing hug. Humans and their…silly modes of affection.

"TIM!"

It was Sond, and I was too shocked to even merit a wriggle out of her grasp. That, and…well, I was pretty glad to see her too.

She must have noticed that I hadn't complained yet, as she held me at arm's length and gave me a stern look. "Are you quite alright there?"

I whimpered quietly, and sat down. Those pesky tears were coming back, as was the lump in my throat. "Errr…"

Sond hovered, concerned. "You aren't hurt, are you?"

I sniffled, and quickly shook my head 'no.' I couldn't tell her what was really wrong, of course. In fact, for once I wanted to say something…something very nice, but I couldn't. But I didn't want to cry in front of her either. So I did the only thing I could think of, stood, and slowly returned her hug.

She didn't seem to mind. At least, she didn't push me off like I probably would have. She gave me another squeeze. "Shh, s'okay. We missed you too."

I didn't comment, but I held on until the tears went away again. I'm kind of glad she didn't mention later that I'd cried all over her shoulder.

I started feeling a bit awkward, so I quickly slipped away and looked for my dropped Moon's Tear. I'd dropped it when we collided, but it hadn't rolled very far. As I held it up, Sond peered.

"That's pretty. Did you find it?"

I nodded, then tried to look questioning.

"Oh, you're probably wondering where everyone else is."

Nod nod. Thank goodness Sond could be observant.

"Oh, they're all inside. C'mon, let's get out of this rain."

I was grateful that she wasn't dwelling on what had just happened. I'd always been rather afraid to show people anything other than a surly face, in fear that they'd somehow think less of me. But Sond either was being very polite, or she just didn't mind. I hoped she wouldn't blurt it to everyone else the minute we caught up with them.

Following her back inside (again with a jump to reach the doorknob), I found the rest of my friends crowded around the telescope with the Professor. The old man looked up, and his eyes lit up in recognition.

"Oh there you are! I was worried after you left last night – I was worried you'd missed all your friends. They've been looking for you, you know."

After that there was a small mob around me. Well, small in the general sense, they kind of still were taller than me. Tatl hovered above and made some silly comment that I really didn't catch. Now normally I would've been feeling a little pinched and prodded, and probably sulky if my friends suddenly crowded me like that. But it was somehow…_different_ this time, something that I didn't quite understand back then.

I guess you could call it 'love,' though not in the way you humans think of it. It's more of a…I dunno…it's hard to explain. It's that feeling you have when you find something old and comforting from when you were really little, or remember something that made you very happy. Or, learning something good about yourself. After having been alone all my life, I'd finally become a part of something bigger, a pack if you could call it that. And after being suddenly torn away from that, I'd realized I'd never be able to stand being alone ever again.

I guess wisdom _does_ come with age.

o-o-o-o-o

Okay, I promise no more mushiness. Not really my thing anyway, no matter what anyone else is going to say. But, to keep this thing a narrative and not a crazy epic, I'll try to keep moving on.

But no more mush, I promise.

o-o-o-o-o

We all had a bit of catching up to do. Between laughs, Kat told me all about their night of chasing the Bomber Gang. Since the Bombers had cheated, my friends had been eventually forced to gang up on each of the members to take them down. Apparently Jim, their leader, now had a sizable lump on the back of his head.

It had taken them all night to catch them, but they'd gained the password, and so headed down through the sewers as quickly as possible. They'd found the dead Skulltulla, and a few live ones as well. But they'd pressed on, worried, finally making it to the Observatory, where they'd found me.

Apparently my friends arrived at the same conclusion I had, and in much the same fashion – that though the telescope the Skull Kid was seen on the roof of the Clock Tower. He just kept _staring_ at the moon, as if he were trying to worship it.

The Professor had more to say on the subject. "I wonder how he got up there. The only real way to get up there isn't open right now…it wouldn't be open _yet_."

"What do you mean?" Link asked.

"The only time the roof of the Clock Tower is open to the public is after midnight on the eve of the Carnival of Time."

We all looked at each other in worry. How were we supposed to get to the Skull Kid, then?

"We could always try to climb it," Chiron suggested.

"Yeah, but…in these bodies? I don't think we'd get too far." Kafei scuffed at the ground. "Maybe if we had a rope, though. Or a grapple."

"It's _much_ too early…" Shikashi was saying.

"Hmm?" Link looked over. "Whaddaya mean, too early?"

"Well, the Carnival of Time – wait, you can't be unfamiliar with that-" Shikashi looked astounded.

Tatl too looked incredulous. "You mean you don't know what that is!"

"Well, I know what it _is_," Kafei started, then his eyes widened, and he hit himself on the forehead. "Wait-of course! All the streamers and banners up in South Clock Town, I'm such an idiot!" Wildly, he started counting to himself off his fingers. "Wait…four…five…it _is_ summertime, isn't it?"

I was surprised too. Last I'd been able to figure in this world it had been late spring. Of course, that had been in Hyrule, and during our last journey. What with all the time travels, we'd probably completely lost track of time. Er…what did Grandma call it…your cicada rhythm? (_Translator's Note: I think he means 'Circadian Rhythm.')_

Kafei stared. "So…then…the Carnival of Time is in…"

"Oh, it starts at midnight tomorrow," Shikashi replied cheerfully.

With that, we all exchanged another one of our groupwide glances. It _is_ kind of funny, when we all get the same idea at the same time. So the Clock Tower was going to open at midnight, in one day. The third day since we'd been cursed. And the last day we had before we were possibly stuck that way.

Quickly taking our leave of Professor Shikashi, we started the trek back through the sewers. I was kind of glad we were going as a group. If there were any more Skulltullas lurking about, I'd rather not have to take them on alone.

"Well, I guess we won't need to climb, at least," Kat said, sounding relieved. She didn't seem to like the idea too much.

"But still," Sond added. "Tomorrow night at midnight…that's cutting our… _deadline_ rather close, isn't it?"

"Heh, yeah, right at the last minute." Link probably would have been grinning. "Then again, that seems to be the way we work best, isn't it?"

I sure hoped Link was feeling as confident about this as he sounded. Because I sure didn't.

o-o-o-o-o

That's enough for today. I'm hungry, and a little bit worn out, so it's time for a break. Ergh, I guess I should deliver this to Kas, so he doesn't have to translate it all at once. By the looks of it, this thing's gonna be a monster. Until next time…


	7. Part 6: The Carnival of Time

To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda. _

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And then we were eight again. Heh, it was funny that I should reach this particular part now, because Ty and Nick just came back today, all the way from – wherever it was they went. Come to think of it, they didn't _say_ where they went. I think they were a bit confused, though, at seeing me sprawled all over Impa's roof with parchments everywhere.

So, I like to feel the sun on my back – nothing bad about that.

Still, I wish I could go…somewhere, too.

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Part 6: The Carnival of Time

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We spent a good deal of the next day exploring the town, and making preparations. Needless to say, we ran out of things to do after a while.

We discovered quite early on that none of the guards were going to let us out any of the gates, no matter how much we tried to explain that we could take care of ourselves.

I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. Even as humans (or whatever) we had trouble being taken seriously because of our age. Being young _and_ Dekus though, made this problem increase tenfold. But it's kind of like what Kat touched upon a bit earlier – there was definitely some tension going on between all the different tribes. I can understand that, it's like having a strange pack intruding on your home territory – you can't exactly be openly hostile in case they're stronger than you. Instead you put up barriers and hope they just get fed up and leave you alone instead.

Either way, the most we could get the guards to do was chuckle condescendingly at how cute and precocious we all were. That was rather frustrating for me, and I stifled the urge to kick them in the shins. It wouldn't have done much, though, as they were wearing armor.

It rained all the second day, but it wasn't a very unpleasant rain. In fact, I didn't really mind getting wet at all. It actually felt rather refreshing. Everyone else seemed to think so as well, oddly enough.

Odder still were the rumors floating about town. The moon I had seen through the telescope seemed to be looming closer all the time, and some people thought it was destined to fall on Clock Town.

But if that were really the case, I thought, people would be hurrying to leave.

At least, that's what I kept telling myself.

Tatl seemed especially concerned about the moon, I kept catching her angled up towards it at odd moments, muttering to herself. I had a feeling she knew something we didn't.

That night, while in North Clock Town, we asked Kafei about a place to sleep. As nice as the Observatory was, staying again would be a bit overstaying the welcome.

"So, your folks have a big house, right?" Link stretched and leaned against the wall near the Great Fairy's Fountain.

"Er…yes…" Kafei stared directly at the ground, tapping his boots with a stick. "Maybe we should stay there tonight."

Kafei obviously didn't like this. "I dunno if that's such a good idea…"

"Why not? If you explain to them-"

"Guh-" Kafei's speech suddenly became heated and sarcastic. "Yes, Link, I'm sure they'll understand _perfectly_. They'll say, 'Oh dear, son, you seem to have been cursed. Oh well, that's fine, we'll just plant you in the garden!'" He slumped moodily. "It doesn't _work_ that way, y'know."

"Hey, I just thought your parents-"

"You've never _had_ parents Link. Quit acting like you know what it's like having them. We're _not_ going to my house. Not when we're like this. Not when _I'm_ like this."

There was a sudden, awkward, frosty silence. It might have just been the circumstances getting to us, but everyone's patience seemed to be wearing thin. Hackles were raised, and there were a lot of angry feelings floating around.

I recognized those angry feelings all too well, as it was exactly the type of attitude I often adopted back them. Maybe it was for the better that I couldn't talk, at least I couldn't add to the problem.

The Clock Tower's bell rang six times.

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NIGHT OF THE SECOND DAY: 36 HOURS REMAIN

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Eventually, Kafei came out of his temper and thought up a better idea – he knew a family that ran a local inn, and he was sure we would be able to get a room for the night. The Stock Pot Inn – a place I can recommend, at least now since they've remodeled – is located in East Clock Town. It's run by Kafei's _now_ sister-in-law Anju, though back _then_ she was still unmarried.

Wow that last sentence was confusing…

However, even I realized something was wrong when we all tumbled in there out of the rain. Anju looked over at us, but her eyes were angled oddly.

Humans make that kind of face when they're very sad.

"H-hello," Kafei said carefully, not sure if he'd be recognized.

Anju looked at him, and bowed. "Welcome to the Stock Pot Inn. Are you…all here on a field trip? Where is your chaperone?"

Kafei looked somewhat relived that she didn't recognize him. "W-we were told to get a room," he finally stammered.

"Oh!" Anju's sad face became even sadder. "I'm sorry.

We're totally booked with reservations. Please tell that to your chaperone."

I'm guessing our expressions fell a bit, because Anju spoke again. "I'm sorry, I really am. But we are not a very large Inn yet, and our largest rooms are-" She suddenly looked at Kafei very curiously. "That mask you have…"

"Oh?" Kafei put a paw to the Keaton mask still balanced on top of his head.

"That mask…how nostalgic," she said quietly. Then she bowed. "I'm sorry. Please do consider our Inn next year, though."

We thanked her and left, but Kafei seemed almost relieved to be out in the rain again. I looked at him questioningly, and he sighed.

"She's my older brother's girlfriend," he explained. "But I've _never_ seen her so gloomy before."

"Maybe they've had a row," Kat offered.

"Maybe," Kafei looked back at the door. "For a second there, I thought she might recognize me. Ah, I'm sorry everyone, I thought we might at least have a dry place to stay tonight."

"Ah, no worries," Sond said cheerfully. This was quite kind of her – out of all of us she disliked the rain the most. "Maybe…the Laundry Pool has that big tree, maybe that would work?"

It was worth a shot, and so we all waddled (and squelched) our way towards South Clock Town. But nobody was in a real hurry despite the rain.

As we passed the Clock Tower, Link spoke for the first time since Kafei had told him off. "We'd better think of a way to get up there too," he said, pointing at the tower. "Cause otherwise all of this will have been for nothing.

I nodded. It was going to be hard though, getting up there. There was a small ledge halfway up that would prove helpful, but Dekus couldn't climb very well, and the tower _was_ rather tall. Maybe if we climbed up on one another, one or two of us might make it to the ledge, but that would leave the rest of us still stuck on the ground.

Maybe if we got a rope…

I racked my brain all the way to the Laundry Pool, when a sudden burst of song broke me out of that stupor. It's funny how some songs just get stuck in your head forever…

_Go around, go around,_

_Water falling on the ground,_

_Watch me turn and sing,_

_Like the windmill's wing…_

It was a man, sitting on a wooden bench by the water. In his lap he held an old-fashioned music box of a kind I'd seen once before in Hyrule. He was turning its crank and singing along to the music it played with a distant look in his eyes.

Link sighed. "Well, here's the tree. I guess we can't really complain if there's other people here, it's a public place."

Sond was humming along to the song. "Doo doo doo…doo doo doo…say, doesn't the song sound a bit, familiar?"

We all paused. "Yeah," Chiron finally said. "It's that song that always reminds me of the rain…that guy in the windmill at Kakariko Village always played it-"

We all turned and looked at the man again. He did bear a striking resemblance to that windmill man. "Huh," Link said. "It's kind of creepy…a lot of people here are just so _almost_-familiar. That guy. Anju-"

The man interrupted Link's train of thought. "La-la-la…they said I was much too loud when I practiced in my room. They got mad. Now I'm sad. I'll just stay here all night away from my pad."

"Do you mind?" Chiron asked sharply. "You're not the only one here."

"Ah, my apologies," said the man sadly. "Maybe if I thought about the past to get my mind off the bad."

"Well, could you do it _quietly_?" Chiron snapped.

If the man heard Chiron, he didn't react. "Dear guest…Long ago, I was in an animal troupe, with dogs and donkeys and such…why, do you ask, could a man join an animal troupe? Well, because man is an animal too, of course!"

I stared. This man was clearly slightly mad, though his logic did have a point. Humans are silly, and often use the term 'animal' as an insult. I never understood. Of course humans are animals. What do they think they are otherwise? Plants?

Heh, well, maybe at the moment _we_ were...

The man's music box continued its song.

_If the moon, were to fall,_

_Would the water come at all?_

_Dooming flames are nigh,_

_Light the morning sky…_

----------_  
_

We spent that second night at the Laundry Pool, listening to the man's song until we fell asleep. My dreams were filled with fire, and yet I couldn't find the energy to be scared. It's funny how you just can't help but be calm before a catastrophe.

And a catastrophe seemed exactly what was in store.

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DAWN OF THE FINAL DAY: 24 HOURS REMAIN

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A Cucco crowed under an overcast sky, the shadow of the moon a looming threat that just couldn't be ignored.

"The moon's really going to fall today, isn't it?" Chiron said apathetically, and we all turned our gazes upward. It certainly seemed like it was, and oddly, it didn't feel quite as alarming as it should that it was.

"I didn't believe he really _meant_ it," Tatl was thinking aloud. "But now…"

"That Mask Salesman knew about this happening, I know it!" Link swore. "So we'd be the ones in danger and he'd hide away in that tower, ready to run-"

"And we can't do anything about it," Sond sighed. "There's no way to get up that Tower…"

"To think a Skull Kid could lay us this low," Kafei said glumly.

I shivered all of a sudden. _Was_ the Skull Kid really the one behind all of this? Somehow it didn't seem possible that one imp could make such a thing happen. The whole world seemed _wrong_ today, not just the moon. Things just seemed so…hopeless. Even as we walked through South Clock Town, the people walking about their daily lives seemed utterly hypnotized. Either they could not see their impending doom, or they simply did not care.

Something was terribly awry about all of this, I thought. As I became reflective, I didn't notice that I was wandering away from the group slightly. Considering my misfortune two days before, this probably wasn't smart of me.

I collided with something at the same moment that Sond called, "Tim, watch out!"

BONK. I promptly fell on my backside. I kept forgetting how small and light I was…

"Hey, you can't use this flower, it's my personal property!" Cringing, I looked up at the Business Scrub I'd managed to collide with. He was chittering at me in the very rapid Deku Scrub language, which to my surprise I found I could understand perfectly.

Kas, if I'd known who he was at the time, would've probably been jealous.

"Well, young one, what do you have to say for yourself!"

I couldn't exactly answer him, but again my friends came to the rescue. "Sorry sir," I heard Kat stammer, "he didn't see you-"

The Business Scrub didn't seem to hear her though. He was staring at me instead. "Boy…where, _where_ did you get _that?_"

The Moon's Tear, which I had been carrying in my pocket, had fallen with me. It now lay sparkling on the cobblestone pavement.

"I would trade anything, _anything_, if you would let me have that stone," he breathed. "Even this prized property of mine."

"What's so special about it?" Link asked.

"It is _only_ the location of the _only_ Golden Flower in Clock Town!" The Business Scrub snapped. "Scrubs like me would give their last leaves for it! Don't you realize how high you can fly with a Golden Flower? You could even reach the Clock Tower with one jump!"

We all stared at him, and he mistook our astonishment for envy.

"I know! Is it not worth your pretty stone?"

I sat there in wonderment. The Moon's Tear…although I was loathe to part with it…it meant the opportunity to confront the Skull Kid…I couldn't let my friends down, not after what they'd done for me.

With a slight ache in my heart, I gave him my Moon's Tear. The delighted Business Scrub gave me the deed to the Golden Flower, then flew off with a squeaky but triumphant laugh.

There was silence.

"Wow," Kafei said finally, "That was _brilliant_."

If I could have smiled, I think I would have.

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NIGHT OF THE FINAL DAY: 12 HOURS REMAIN

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"I _really _don't like this," Tatl murmured. She'd been quite stoic the entire day, spending most of her time hidden away in Link's hat. I suppose we were all a little glad that she wasn't her usual snarky self, but it made the mood of the town even gloomier.

The ground had started to rumble late in the morning, and the small earthquakes were beginning to increase in both duration and intensity. I stared upwards to be greeted by a glowering moon that seemed to take up the whole sky.

"Squeak," I said unhappily. Was I destined to die in such a state?

All of us sat at the entrance to the Clock Tower, legs dangling over the ledge as we waited for the entrance to open.

"But what if the Skull Kid is gone?" Kafei said, fretting. "Then we would have come all this way for nothing."

"It's all we've got," Link answered. "And the sooner we get what he took from us, the sooner we can get out of here."

"Get out of here?" Kafei blinked. "You mean escape? How can we escape _that?_" He gestured at the sky. "That's not something that only affects a small area, you know. Termina will be completely destroyed! And how do we get back to Hyrule, fly?"

"Besides," Sond said miserably, "Even if did manage to escape, all those people down there – they'll die."

"Maybe if we do defeat the Skull Kid the moon will stop," Chiron offered, though he didn't sound like he really believed himself.

I let myself fall backwards and closed my eyes so I wouldn't have to stare at the moon's leering face. All this doom and gloom, it was affecting even us now. It was in the air, this hopelessness, this despair, and we could do nothing but breathe it in.

_Grandma_, I thought miserably, _if you could see your grandson now, what would you think of him?_

_She'd think he was feeling awfully sorry for himself_, came the answer. _Despairing…when has that ever helped anyone? Even when all else seems lost, there's always hope that what will come might fall in your favor_…

_Though the only thing that seems to be falling is the moon…_

With that thought, I felt myself doze off.

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BOOM. BOOM.

I sat up with a shriek, thinking the moon had fallen on us all while I was asleep. My friends, similarly jerked awake into disorientation, made me realize that we were still very much alive. The ground was rumbling, though.

"Look, fireworks!" Kafei said, pointing into the darkness. "My parents always get some this time of year for the town."

At that point in my life I had never seen fireworks before, and I stared, mesmerized. They were like miniature bursts of the aurora from back home, which made me feel a pang of homesickness.

"C'mon Tim, stop daydreaming and get over here!" I looked over and found the source of the rumble – the doorway to the Clock Tower's summit had opened into a rather foreboding staircase. My friends were already halfway up them.

"Not too much time left before it hits now…" I heard Kafei mutter.

The Clock Tower opens every year at midnight to mark the beginning of the Carnival of Time. The very face of the clock slides skywards, forming a platform on which people can stand. If the moon hadn't been blocking the sky, it would have been the perfect place to stargaze. I guessed that normally there would be crowds and crowds of people lining up to go here for that exact reason, but not this night.

I don't think they could have come if they had wanted to. Even we seemed to climb the Tower's stairs in slow motion, as if the gloomy mood were physically pushing us away.

Then Tatl's shriek cut through the night.

"TAEL!"

It was indeed her brother, slowly orbiting the masked face of the Skull Kid hovering many meters above us. In one paw the imp was slowly tossing a familiar blue object.

"My Ocarina!" Link yelled almost as piercingly as Tatl had. Dekus can really get onto those high registers, I thought, cringing.

Link's statement of the obvious didn't seem to faze the Skull Kid at all. He didn't even seem to notice us. Then Tael flew forward, a violet ball barely discernable from the night sky.

"Swamp. Mountain. Ocean. Canyon. The Four who are _there_…bring them _here_!"

The Skull Kid jerked at this and glared at Tael. "Stupid fairy! Don't talk out of line! Begone!" His arm lashed out, slapping Tael out of the way. As the fairy cartwheeled out of control, he suddenly vanished in midair.

"What did you do to my brother!" Tatl screamed.

It was only then that Skull Kid seemed to notice us. "Ehehe! Seems I have company this fine night! Come to watch your doom personally?"

"Give us our stuff back!" Sond yelled.

"Hah! If you'd wanted it so badly, why'd you let me take it in the first place? Besides," the Skull Kid went on, his chilling _second_ voice coming to the surface, "it isn't like you'll be needing those things in the next world…" His gaze turned up towards the moon, which was so close now it threatened to engulf the entire sky.

"Dumb fairy shooting his mouth off," he rumbled to himself. "But no matter. Even if _they_ were to come now, they wouldn't be able to handle me. Hah."

"Then I guess we'll have to do. Don't you dare underestimate us!" Link called up challengingly to the imp.

Skull Kid stared him down. "Your efforts are pointless. Just look above you. If it's something to be stopped, then try and stop it!" Arching his back, he gave voice to a terrible scream. Waves of sickly purple energy flickered about like ghost flames, and the ground began to shake again.

"He's calling the moon down!" Chiron yelled. "We haven't got much time!"

"What are we supposed to do, run?" Kat snapped back at him. "There isn't anywhere to go!"

"I dunno about you, but I'm getting my Ocarina back," Link said calmly, without raising his voice. It's kind of creepy how serious he gets sometimes. He'll act like a real idiot sometimes, but when it really counts, he suddenly gets very quiet and solemn. And somehow, at that moment, it was very comforting to see him like that. Whenever he got serious, things just always seemed to pull through, no matter how bad.

"There's no point in getting that old thing back now!" Tatl snapped. From the tone of her voice it sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Tael…he's gone, we're helpless-"

"I'm getting it _back_," Link repeated. "If it's the last thing I do. I promised to keep it safe, and I'm not going to die with any broken promise, understand?"

Tatl seemed stunned. "How?" she finally said. "There's no way to get at him when he's flying!"

"If only I had my arrows," Sond muttered. "Or if we had something that shot from a long distance."

Tatl froze in mid-flight, then recovered her equilibrium before she fell to the ground. "Duh! Of course! How could I be so _stupid_! There _is _a way!"

"What- why didn't you say something before?" Link snapped, still serious but somewhat exasperated with the fairy.

"I…I forgot, that's all…but whatever! Dekus can shoot concentrated bubbles using Magic Power-"

Suddenly what had happened down in the sewer with the Skulltulla made more sense. How had I done that before? I'd sneezed-

I forced a sneeze, hoping for the best, and another one of those bubbles came with it. It hovered in the air a moment before bursting with a flash of light.

"There, see, like that!" Tatl said. "But aim higher!"

Kat was a resourceful type, and instead of demanding me give an explanation she knew I couldn't offer, she just tried it herself. Her bubble was much more impressive, and made a much bigger flash of light when it burst.

Link caught on nearly as quickly as Kat did, though he instead took Tatl's advice and aimed his bubble at the Skull Kid. Smart move. The imp was too busy staring at the moon falling on us to notice, and the bubble struck home. Skull Kid jerked backwards, as if stunned.

"Why you-"

"Hit him again!" Tatl yelled.

Link tried it again, but this time the Skull Kid wasn't fooled. He slapped the bubble away like he had Tael. "Hah. That won't do any good, fool. You'll have to do better than-argh!"

Another bubble had hit him from behind.

"He can't deflect from every angle at once!" I heard Kafei call out. "Everyone shoot him at once!"

At that point it became a bit of a free for all, as the imp was suddenly bombarded from many sides with bubbles. I do have to admit that it was kind of gratifying; after all he'd put us through he certainly deserved what he got. The Skull Kid was slowly brought down to the ground. And with him came the instruments.

Link snatched up his Ocarina at once. "Got it!"

As everyone was reunited with their precious items, I suddenly realized that the air seemed too hot. The ground was rumbling. I stared frantically upwards. I heard someone cry out my thoughts, "Guys, the moon's still falling!"

"Tim, you can talk again!" Sond whooped.

I stopped, realizing the voice I heard was indeed my own. "I…I…t-that's not important though!" I tried to keep my elation internal, as there were more important things at the moment. "The moon hasn't stopped!"

"But of course," said a smooth voice. "Did you think just knocking me down would stop something like that?" The Skull Kid lifted off of the ground like a limp dummy. It wasn't for the last time that I got the distinct impression that it was the mask speaking. "You children may have got your trinkets back, but it matters not. You _will_ die, you've run out of time."

The moon was encircled with a ring of flames – the air began to shimmer from the heat, and I felt an instinctual panic. Deku Scrubs are terribly afraid of fire.

"Somebody! Anybody! Goddess of Time, help us, please! _We need more time!_" Tatl swore to the heavens.

More time…in Hyrule Castle Town there is a temple where the Master Sword sleeps, a place where a song echoes through the ageless stones themselves…it was there that Link had once played a song taught to him by the Princess of Hyrule-

How had that song gone, again?

Link caught my eye, and without a word, I realized that the same thought had been awakened in his mind. Wolves often speak without making a sound, but it was the first time I'd ever seen a human do it so effectively. _I need to play the Song of Time._

Link nodded once and brought the Ocarina up.

It glowed in his grip, and transformed itself into a quintet of horns.

"Hey," Chiron said, hanging onto his guitar for dear life. "What's with the tuba?"

"That's not a _tuba_," Tatl snapped. "Can't you see those are Deku Pipes? And how is that going to help, anyway? We're doomed!"

Link didn't answer her, instead a song, impossibly loud, echoed out from those pipes. The world seemed to slow as the music of the Temple of Time echoed through the night air.

The last thing I saw was the moon's face grinning at me. The last thing I felt was the air beginning to turn to fire-

The ground fell out from beneath me, and as all turned to white and the rumbling faded away, I thought I heard a voice.

"_The Goddess of Time is protecting you…"_

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End file.
